Oblivious to the Flame
by Saara-dono
Summary: Gaara arrives from another dimension His mission: to protect Sakura Haruno, but she's just a normal girl...isn't she? STORY ON HIATUS AND HAVE MOVED TO A NEW PROFILE Lindy Rose. IF YOU LOVE THIS STORY YOU CAN CONTACT/HARRASS ME THERE ABOUT CONTINUEING IT
1. Mission

Hello everyone!!!!!!! This is my very first fanfic EVER and I am so very spazzilly excited to see what you think of my first chappi

So please

read it

loveit

Review!!!!!!!!!

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I stepped toward the building reviewing the mission in my mind. I was to protect my charge from all harm at all times. I would be able to read her files at my leisure and I was to try and collect any information I could that would help our researchers to understand her. I was to keep my identity a secret, a given in my field of work and every full moon I would send any new data through. Depending on what they thought on the other side a messenger might be sent over with new visuals for me. The charge was my life now, taking care of her was my only purpose.

_**A purpose...that should be a nice change for you. (a steely voice echoed in the back of my skull)**_

_What are you talking about, my life has always had a purpose, I've completed as many missions as you are old Shukaku. (And here I was arguing with the echo)_

_**You calling those missions your purpose in life only further proves my point. All your life has been is killing, training how to kill, or finding killers and then killing them. I know far more about killing than you ever will. I love killing as you do and that is why we are feared, but it is not my purpose in life and certainly not yours. And as far as how many missions you've completed compared to my age, dream on young pup, you've got a long way to go before you even get close to that high a number.**_

_If killing isn't my purpose in life then what is? And what is yours?_

_**Mine is none of your business and yours...you haven't found it yet, but you will.**_

_Could you be a bit clearer? Maybe give me some sort of hint? Or even just tell me?_

_**Soon**_

_That's it? Could you maybe go out of your old cranky demon way to give me a little more?_

_**No**_

_Fine_

Knowing I wouldn't get any more out of him I shook myself as I registered my surroundings, having not done so earlier. I looked up for the first time at the building I was supposed to be going into. It was a very nondescript structure built of brick with bland beige stucco covering sections of wall. A large dent in the straight planes of the walls lead past a metal staircase to some glass doors through which a mass of very small children, middle age mothers, and sleepy teenagers flowed. They did this in a mindless fashion that said that they had made these motions countless times and no longer needed to bother to put thought into them. Watching an older sister lead her little brother across the crosswalk and up to the door I thought of the parting conversation my sister and I had shared...

_"Gaara..." I looked over, "Yes Temari?"_

_Looking carefully away from me she said, "You've just been transferred from the Strike unit to the Dog unit, and I know you're upset about it." Feeling the waves of agreement rolling off me she hurried on, "I know you want to know why they transferred you, and that makes sense; you were a great striker. I don't why either but," taking a deep breath she turned towards me and staring straight into my eyes said, "I'm glad they did."_

_Startled, I jerked back and growled, more in surprise than anger, "Why?"_

_"Because," she said smiling, "in the Striker unit you had to be cold, you worked alone and you couldn't trust anyone, even if you had been allowed to there was never the time. You would go in, accomplish your mission as quickly and quietly as possible and then leave and no one would even know you were there. And you were good at it too, and it's because you were so good at it that you're lonely. The Dog unit will be different. You'll be guarding someone for a very long period of time; you're encouraged to form bonds of trust, even more so because you've been assigned to the research wing. I mean," she said excitedly, "the bonds between Dog's and their charges are even protected in the Morei Dante! This is your chance to become close to another person, to form a bond with someone outside of me and Kankuro." Her face then changed from jubilant to somber and concerned, "Gaara, I do want you to try and get to know your charge but, much more importantly, and something I know will be much more difficult for you, I want you to try and let your charge get to know you."_

_I looked down while I absorbed this, while I tried to think of a response. Finally I looked up into her eyes that were intently searching on my face and all I could say was, "I'll try"_

I thought on this while my feet carried me to my first class (I had already received my schedule). Thinking back on that conversation now I knew that I had done a very stupid thing in saying those two tiny but oh so very powerful words. Temari would now expect me to try and become close with this girl, my charge, and I knew that was simply not possible. The only people who I trusted were my siblings, Temari and Kankuro and my mentor, and they themselves could not say that they knew me completely. If the only three people that I loved in all the dimensions couldn't say that they really knew me, how was I to let a complete stranger get to know me?

_**mhhmhhmhhh....( a metallic laugh clanged in my mind)**_

_What are you laughing about?_

_**You'll find out.**_

_Find out what?_

_**Poor pup, you have no idea what you're in for. Such a long and difficult road...**_

_And you can't be bothered to let me in on what that would be?_

_**Nope.**_

Shaking my head again ( I've been told that doing that's a habit of mine) I sat down in a desk just inside my classroom door to wait for my charge to arrive. Temari, for you I will try, but I will fail.

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now that I have written more I feel that this chapter is a little akward

but I'm not really sure what to do with it

oh well


	2. Red

The fact that both of my stories have the quality of not quite making sense as to what the story line is has been brought to my attention and in the few beginning chapters it is understandable and exactly what I want

I definitely mean to do that with that first chapter(give Gaara an aura of mystery if you will) but if there are any questions on other things like well what is happening here or something I would love to answer those questions unless there is a specific reason not to. If there is I will try to explain it as best I can.

So this chapter is dedicated to Silver Wolf who was the first to click on the special button at the bottom

Thank you all very much!

_Spaghetti!-Sakura's thought's_

_**Spaghetti!-Inner Sakura**_

Spaghetti!-normal

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A young pink headed woman sprinted across a parking lot. If anyone had been able to look in her eyes they would have seen that they were completely vacant, as if she wasn't at all paying attention to anything around her. That would be, well, because she wasn't.

(inside Sakura's head )

_I am so going to be late!_

**God, will Konohamaru ever shut up with the whining??!**

_And Haku with the hair straightener and then Inari had to go spill tea all over herself on the way to the car!_

**Mom just needs to make that little whiny bitchy brat shut up and she needs to do it soon!!!!...HEY! Watch out you idiot!! You almost got us hit by a car!!**

_Well that's cause your bitching distracted me!_

**What?! MY bitching? What about YOUR bitching? Bitch!**

_W-Whatever, just shut up why don't you_

**Fine....grumblegrumble(Inner Sakura stomps off in a corner)**

I dashed through the front door of the school nearly knocking over the boy holding it open

"Sorry!" I yelled backwards as I made a speedy right turn almost running over the school nurse.

"Whoa, Sakura, no running in the halls", I heard her laughing behind me.

Still running full tilt anyways, I had propelled myself through the classroom door when a bright flash of red registered in my peripheral vision.

Turning mid-stride, I looked over my shoulder to see what the red was....and then....I felt my feet tangling beneath me

Watch out!!!!!

But it was too late.

I had been going so fast that I was already airborne and falling head first into who knows what and now all I could do was brace myself for the jarring impact... that never came... instead I felt a solid warmth around my waist.

As my feet settled on the ground I opened my eyes and saw, much to my horror, that a few inches from my nose was a whole open box of sculpting tools. (Now if you don't happen to know what sculpting tools look like I would like to emphasize how sharp and pointy they are. Not a friend of anyone's face or other sensitive body parts.)

I stepped back into something firm and warm, the contact sending an electric jolt to my temporarily frozen mind and reawakening the irritating other me from her previous state of shock.

**O my god O my god, o my giddy god's trousers you almost killed us!**

_I did not!_

**Well at the very least we would have been blind and then I never would have gotten to see another hot guy again! And it would have been all your fault!**

_Oh stop whining, we were saved by...wait who saved us...?_

**You IDIOT!!! He's still standing right behind us and here you've just been standing here like a zombie this whole time!**

_!!!!!!!!_

Reaching down and feeling the strong masculine hand still wrapped around my torso my spine stiffened and my cheeks start to steam with embarrassment and without even looking I can feel my face turn several shades of red and maybe even a few different kinds of purple. Turning slowly around, still in the grasp of my savior, I kept my eyes focused on my feet until I could steady my breathing.

After a few moments though, despite the fact that this holding felt very nice, I also began to feel intensely awkward so I took a deep breath and looked straight up into the stranger's eyes. They were THE MOST BEAUTIFUL EYES I HAVE EVER SEEN. Throughout my life I've told that I had big eyes, this boys eyes were as big as mine and ringed with a thick solid black shadow and instead of deep sea green like mine they were blue, but not just blue, bluer than any robins egg ever laid, or any clear sky on a cloudless day. These eyes would put all the little bluebells and even the ocean to shame because they were every shade of blue all at once. Then, once again, my eye was caught by something red and my attention was, of course, immediately drawn up to it.

"It was you!" I exclaimed. Seeing his confused expression I continued in a rushed voice, "I mean it was your red hair. You see I saw red out of the corner of my eye and when I turned to look at it I fell." I gasped, "Not that I meant that it was your fault! I didn't mean that at all!! I'm very grateful for you saving me, thank you very very much...wait I'm sorry...um" Taking another deep breath I stepped back out of his hold and stuck out my hand, "I'm Sakura, and you are?"

The boy who was standing with his arms now crossed, looked down at me with a blank look. When I continued to hold my hand out to him he took it but then, instead of letting, go he maintained his grasp.

"Gaara," he said, "You talk a lot."

I blushed, both from the continued contact of our hands and his comment. I smiled sheepishly, "Yea I guess you could say that I don't talk at all or I don't know when to shut up." I looked down at my hand that he was holding. "Ummm...you're still holding my hand Gaara."

He looked down with a shocked expression on his face and immediately released my hand

**Why'd you say anything you ditz?! A HOT boy was holding our hand!!! What's wrong with you?!?! God!!! I can't believe I live in the same body as you!**

I tried to block out the voice of my inner self, cause, well, I was already feeling like enough of an idiot without her ragging on me.

"Thanks again for saving me. That would have been pretty ugly," I said brightly, motioning towards the tool box behind me. "What can I do to repay your heroic deed?

He looked puzzled, "Why would you want to do that"

Now it was my turn to look puzzled. "Why? Cause you saved me and I want to do something for you to thank you." He was still looking down at me with a very confused expression. "Ok how bout this? I just want to. So, what can I do you for?

He shrugged his shoulders, "I don't need anything."

I sighed, "I see you're going to make this difficult, I'll have to think of something myself. Hmmmmmm....hmmm...hmmm...I know! You're new here aren't you?" He nodded. "Then I'll show you around for the day! And if by the end of the day you can't stand me, well then, I'll leave you alone, no strings attached. Deal?"

I watched his face as he thought about my proposal, inner was right, he really was hot. His gorgeous gorgeous eyes were set in a lean alabaster face with a razor thin nose and though his mouth was now frowning in thought his lips just looked so dahm kissable! Looking back up at his distractingly brilliant red hair again I noticed a red kanjin tattoo nearly hidden under his bangs. I wonder what it means..."Huh, what I'm sorry?" I said, "Did you say something?"

**YOU ARE AN IDIOT he was talking to you and you didn't even notice**

_shudup_

Gaara looked at me in the 'are you crazy?' way, "I said yes, you can show me around today."

I smiled a blindingly brilliant smile, "Well then Mr. Gaara sir let me tell you a little about our lovely school where our lives all consist of homework based torture, sleep deprivation and caffeine in all forms"

This was going to be so much fun!

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So there it is chapter 2

took me awhile didn't it?

I hope you like it and in case you really want to see more you should go to my page and vote on the poll I set up so I can know which story people actually care about

so tada and randr and all that jazz


	3. Thoroughly Together

_And here is chapter 3!!!_

_love it!!!_

_love it I tell you!!_

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_I don't know how she isn't dead yet. I don't even see her for more than a second and somehow she puts herself in danger and nearly gets her face half amputated!_

**Haha, she should make your life interesting.**

_If interesting means tense and or frustrating then yes_

**It'll do you good to have a challenge. Keeping someone alive instead of the other way around will do your social skills wonders**

_My social skills are fine as they are_

**Nonexistent you mean?**

_Exactly_

**'Sigh' You have so far to go...for now just listen to the girl**

Shukaku was right so I turned my attention back outwards to where Sakura was happily burbling on about her friends that she wanted me to meet.

"...and those are the girls. But the people I hang out the most with are my boys. You see I have my group of boys; Sasuke, Itachi, Naruto, Kiba and Deidara. Sasukes my locker partner and all the rest of them are like a whole group of really cool brothers. Those guys are one of the main reasons going to school is worthwhile." She directed her grin at me, "Did you have friends like that at your old school Gaara?"

I was a little taken aback, why the hell was she so friendly? What's wrong with her? I mean most people aren't so friendly or so eager to get to know people, especially me. Not that I've met many people personally but I've observed a lot of them on my missions and the people I have met have been to intimidated to talk to me much.. This girl is just so downright friendly it's weird.

I already knew an answer to her question though, I'd prepared one in advance. "I've never been to a school. I was sick a lot as a child and was quarantined most of the time."

"Oh," she said looking at me with wide sad eyes, "I'm sorry Gaara. When was it that you got well again?"

Wait, why did she look so sad?

"A few years ago," I figured I could fit in another lie or two in this conversation. "I lived in China with a few monks for about four years and they helped me regain my strength by teaching me things like meditation and martial arts." There, now I wouldn't have to make any awkward excuses later if anyone happened to notice my hand to hand combat skills.

"Really?" Her eyes filled with enthusiasm, "Will you teach me? I've always wanted to learn martial arts but I could never afford a class and some of my friends think I should do 'yoga' or something in order to 'center myself' cause I'm always too wound up so I'd love to learn meditation too." She paused mid babbling, "If that's ok with you I mean, you don't have to if you don't want to...um." She looked down, her cheeks pink.

What was she doing with her hands? I pointed to them, "Why are you doing that with your hands?"

"What? Oh you mean these?" There she went again doing that weird hand motion again. "Those are air quotes; you've never seen air quotes before?" I shook my head, "well I guess they are a little lame so try not to learn from my bad habits ok?" she blushed again and laughed at herself, totally at ease around me. Me, one the most experienced killers in all the dimensions; someone who most people instinctively avoid simply out of an inborn sense of self preservation, something this girl does not appear to have.

Like I said, weird.

"So," she said, "You didn't really answer my question Gaara, but that's ok though, I understand if you don't want to..."

Opps, in my puzzlement at her 'air quotes' and her all around oddness I'd totally forgotten that she's asked anything. "Maybe," I said, my face impassive. Better not to schedule anything yet, I needed time to map out the territory and memorize her habits but having that option could be beneficial in the future.

Content with my answer she stopped talking and leaned over her notebook. I glanced over at her and watched her absentmindedly making intricate swirling little doodles on the cover as she hummed to herself. She looked up at the door of the classroom and mused aloud, "The art teachers pretty late isn't he?"

I hadn't really thought about it before but she was right, class was supposed to have started about twenty minutes ago and there still was no sign of our teacher. I looked over at her "Who's supposed to be teaching this class anyway?

"A new teacher, I think his name is Mr. Hatake but I could be wrong."

I think I just twitched.

_She can't be serious_

**I think she is**

_Him, here? That's not possible_

**I wouldn't be surprised**

_'moan...' It's gotta be him, the lateness is trademark Kakashi. If he's here I'm gonna throttle him_

**You know he was probably just worried about you, young pup that you are**

_I'll throttle him anyway_

**mhahaha**

"Yo, Gaara? You in there?" I looked up to see a concerned Sakura waving a hand in front of my face.

"There you are," she smiled, "I thought I'd lost you."

"What do you want?" My voice came out in more of a growl than I'd meant it to.

"Oh, um nothing," her smile faded a little bit and I cringed inwardly in what I think was guilt, a very peculiar feeling and not one I'm very familiar with, why should I care if I hurt her feelings? "Well," she continued, "You just seemed a little out of it, but that's ok," she reassured, as if that might offend me or something, "I do that all the time."

I felt a strange desire to reassure her that I wasn't mad but I had no idea what to say to her.

"Hello students." I looked over to see a tall silver haired man stroll through the door and walk to the front of the classroom. "I am Mr. Kakashi Hatake, but I would prefer it if you called me Kakashi. I am your new art teacher but, unfortunately enough, I have never learned art myself, so," he looked around at the perplexed faces staring up at him and found my glare amidst the group. He smiled at me and continued, "I suppose we will all have to learn together, starting tomorrow. Today I want to hear what it is that you all want to be learning and what type of art projects you would like to do...."

I tuned him out and instead continued to glare up at him and imagine all the ways I could put him in pain. It would be difficult, seeing as he was my mentor and knew most of my tricks, but maybe if I was able to distract him by stealing the book hanging out of his pocket I would be able to do it...Hey!

I looked up from my plotting to see Sakura cheerfully dragging me out of my chair by my elbow. "Why are you touching me?" I rumbled at her,

She let go and stepped back some of the cheer gone from her eyes, man what was with this girl? She got hurt so easily!

"Well it's break and since we have a double art today I was wondering if you wanted to come meet some of my friends but if you want we can stay here...?" She looked up at me expectantly with shiny eager eyes.

I thought about it. I would have to talk to Kakashi-sensei sometime soon...but it could wait until lunch time... "Sure, let's go."

She cheered a little under her breath and clapped her hands before running out the classroom door. Before I could move she popped her head back around the corner and looked at me "You coming slowpoke?"

I just raised my eyebrows at her skeptically and followed her out.

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She chattered on happily all the way upstairs and through the hallways until we came to an emptier bit of space off by an elevator. As we walked I memorized the hallways she led me through and cataloged every face as it walked by. I was so intent on my task that when she let out a sudden squeal a wave of panic rushed over me and I whipped my head around to find her again.

When my eyes found her I saw her running up to a tall black haired young man who leaned down and spun her around in a hug.

"Sakura!" He set her down and looked down at her with a fond smile on his face, his arms still hanging around her waist "How was your weekend?"

"It was great Itachi! How was yours?"

I watched them chattering on and on with his arms still wrapped around her waist. When would he stop touching her? Are they mates or something? Not that I care but it's so awkward to watch!

**You do realize you're so bothered because you do care, don't you?**

_I do not. I've just met this girl and I couldn't care less about her except that she is my charge and I must do what's best for her._

**Then why do you feel like ripping that young man's arms off?**

_I don't_

**You can't lie to me when I can see your thoughts**

_I'm not lying_

**Liar**

_Shut up_

"Gaara!" Sakura called my name. I looked up at her, a full fledged glare on my face which I directed at the boy holding her. He was now rubbing his hands up and down her back in a tender display. I felt my nails digging into my palms.

"Gaara," she said, stepping away from the boy and motioned towards him, "this is Itachi. Itachi." she looked up at him and indicated me, "this is Gaara. I'm showing him around Konoha today."

The person called Itachi waved at me, "Hey man, nice to meet ya." He stuck out a hand that I firmly ignored until he dropped it. He looked down at Sakura and then back at me with a skeptical look. She shrugged her shoulders. "Well," he said, "I gotta run so I'll catch up with ya later." He leaned down and gave Sakura another tender hug and then walked away with my eyes boring bloody holes in the back of his skull.

Unaware to my glare Sakura turned and walked up to a locker and yanked it open. I watched over her shoulder as she rummaged through a mound of binders and papers.

"So, Gaara, where's your locker?"

I shrugged

"Well," she said, trying to balance a pile of books on her knee, "does it say on your schedule?"

I hadn't looked yet so I pulled out the crumpled piece of paper from my pocket.

Name: Gaara Subaku

Grade: 11

Gender: M

Date of birth: 1/19/91

Locker Number 121 Combination: 9-20-2

Per 1: room# 143-Art- Hatake

Per 2: room# 254-Chemistry-Anko

Per 3: room# 232-P.E.-Gai

Per 4: room#144-Study Hall

Per 5: Lunch

Per 6: room# 257-History-Ibiki

Per 7: room# 236-Geometry-Iruka

Per 8: room# 224-Literature- Gekko

"So, what is it?" Sakura leaned in and tried to peer at the paper I was holding.

"121." I answered tersely, still a little ruffled by my reaction to that boy.

"Well," she said, putting her hands on her hips and looking around, "Those lockers over there are 200 lockers and mine is...", she turned, "Gasp! Gaara, look!"

I looked. There was locker 121...right next to her open locker, 120. Well, I had to give it to my mission coordinators, they were thorough.

"This is so great! We get to be locker neighbors and..." she looked at my emotionless face and stumbled at bit, "Well at least I think it's great anyways." She smiled again, "So, can I see your schedule?"

I handed the crumpled paper over to her and watched her scan it, and then scan it again.

"No. Way." She looked up at me, green eyes wide, "Gaara, you have every class with me. Man," she laughed and shook her head, "this is just a little weird."

_Not weird, just thorough_

**I applaud their thoroughness (clanging clapping echoed in my head)**

"Come on Gaara! We're gonna be late!"

I followed after the earnest girl and, when I was sure she wasn't looking, I let one corner of my mouth curl upwards.

_I applaud their thoroughness too._

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tadaaaa!!!!!!

love it!!!!!

I command you!!!!

I also command you to leave me a review!!!

A nice long review!!!!

REVIEW!!!!!!


	4. A Chat and a Heart Attack

Chapter 4

I love this chapter

it makes me laugh:)

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It had been a long but productive morning. I had managed to completely mentally map out the entire building while still keeping tabs on Sakura. So far I hadn't found any immediate threats to her safety but I was still tensed for action, waiting for something to happen.

Now though, instead of being within a few feet of her like I had been since I had first met her, I was going to leave her for a few minutes, a thought that made me very edgy.

Looking over at her from my slouched position against the wall I saw her animatedly conversing with a taller girl with buns on her head.

I straightened and casually stretched out, letting my fingers gently brush against her arm, planting a tiny shielding device on her skin. Now, she would be relatively safe from any physical harm for about 10 minutes, enough time to run an errand.

I also noticed, with a twinge of unexpected pleasure, how her skin rose and her cheeks flushed when I touched her arm.

"I left something in the art room. Where can I find you?" I asked lazily.

Sakura waved goodbye to the girl Tenten and walked towards me. "Oh, I'll come with you Gaara."

"No." My voice was too sharp and I saw her cringe at it.

"Well, ok then," she turned down another hall, walking away from me. "I guess I'll see you outside."

I made my way down to the art room and focused on not visualizing her dejected face.

When I got to the art room it was empty. Of course, Kakashi was guaranteed to not be there when I needed him to be, but I had to talk to him, so I settled myself on a desk, intent on waiting for him as long as I possibly could.

After an age of sitting, he walked in.

"Kakashi," I said, casually extending my arms up before bringing them to rest behind my head, "Why are you here? Or rather," my vice turned menacing. "what are you doing on my mission you aggravatingly ever present old man?"

"Haha, Gaara. Good to see you son! What's it been, a month since we last trained together? Have you been getting lazy in my absence?" Kakashi's eyes crinkled in mocking laughter but I could tell he was just as glad to see me as I was to see him. To tell the truth I had missed the old man, he was the only person outside of Temari and Kankuro that I actually had a relationship with. Those two didn't know about Kakashi because of the line of work we were in together but he was almost a surrogate father to me and I had been hoping that once I was out of the Striker unit I could introduce my siblings to my mentor.

Not that any of my happiness at seeing him made any difference in my plan to violently strangle the living daylights out of him. I still fully intended to see that through.

"You avoided my question," I said in a dark voice, "what are you doing here?"

"Do I need a reason to visit my favorite student?" Kakashi said airily, "I just wanted to see how you were doing."

I groaned, "Don't lie to me old man, you're here to babysit me aren't you? Did the council send you or are you here on your own?"

"Oh, I came on my own; but I'm not here to babysit you." Kakashi said hastily when he saw my glare, "I was reading the research files on the girl and I thought what the research labs have found was fascinating and I wanted to look into it myself. I guess you could say I'm doing some field research of my own."

I hadn't seen the files yet, what was so interesting about her? "Well," "I huffed, my plans to strangle him deflating, "Just stay out of my way, but" I relented, "If I find anything interesting I'll let you know."

"That's my boy!" Kakashi said cheerily, he looked up at the clock, "You better hurry, that shield I'm sure you put on her ran out about 2 minutes ago.

I looked up at the clock in a panic

_OH SHIT!_

**Run you fool!**

I sprinted out the door and dashed down the hall and around the corner. I turned left and burst through the door into the streaming sunshine.

My head whipped from side to side, trying to find a flash of pink.

**There!**

I looked and saw her standing in the middle of street with a crowd of running boys. She was standing in front of a boy holding a ball and was looking around at two other boys, a big fat one and one with a spiky ponytail on the top of his head, who were edging at her from either side. I breathed a sigh of relief and started slowly walking towards her when suddenly, they ran at her!

In a single second my horrified brain registered that two boys, with the combined weight of over three hundred and fifty pounds, were running full tilt at my charge who, for some reason, showed no intent of getting out of their way.

Two seconds later I was standing beside some cars on the far side of the street with Sakura cradled in my arms.

I glared down at her, "What do you think you're doing?" I growled furiously.

"Gaara where did you, how did you," She said, looking around disorientated. Then she realized I was holding her, "put me down!"

"Not until you tell me what the hell you were doing just now, were you trying to get yourself killed?" I asked incredulously.

"I think she told you to put her down." Someone said.

I looked over to see the source of the voice. Standing about two yards away was a pale boy with spiky raven colored hair. His arms were crossed and he was staring at me icily. Behind him was the fat boy, the wiry boy, and four others who were all glaring at me as well.

I carefully set Sakura back on the ground and directed my glare at the assembled boys. "What were you doing? You could have hurt her! And you!" I said, turning back to her, "What were you thinking? You could have been flattened!

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Sakura POV

"Gaara calm down." I said, laying my hand on his arm, "we were just playing football. I play lineman. Blocking them," I said, indicating the two boys who had run at me before Gaara had swept me up, "is my job."

"Sakura who the hell is this guy?"

"Sasuke, this is Gaara." I said, looking nervously back and forth between the two glaring boys, "Gaara, this Sasuke, Kiba, Naruto, Shikamaru, Neji, Lee, and Chouji."

I settled my gaze back on Gaara, "Would you like to play Gaara? You were pretty fast just now, I'm sure you'd make a good receiver."

He looked at me and then back at the others. Then he nodded, "I'll play, on your team."

I beamed at him, "Ok!"

The other guys all looked at me skeptically; Gaara seems to evoke that emotion in a lot of people I guess. I just nodded encouragingly at them; I knew they would like Gaara if they just got to know him a little better.

"Alright," Neji said, "let's play then. Sasuke," he threw him the ball, "It's your kickoff."

I turned with my team and ran to the end of the street with Gaara following me closely. We all turned together and Sasuke threw the ball down to the end of the street where the other team scrambled to pick it up and then started to run with it.

I grinned in enthusiasm and ran out to catch Lee who was barreling down the street, skipping around the hands that reached out to tag him. Suddenly Neji was between me and Lee and I ran at him with the intention of hitting him and using his body to bounce off of and grab Lee. I was two feet away when I leaped...but…I didn't hit Neji. I looked around perplexedly, what had happened?

Guess where I was.

In Gaara's arms _again_.

_How the hell did he do that?_

**I don't know. It's so annoying but **_**so**_** hot at the same time!**

_How is this hot? He's picking me up like a child and he's not letting me play!(stomp my foot inside my head)_

**But look at his muscles!...**

I looked fiercely up at Gaara, "Put me down _right now_ Gaara."

He did, looking at me warily, trying to gauge my reaction.

I drew a deep breath. "Gaara, do _not_ pick me up again understand? I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself and I do _not_ need protecting while playing football. Promise me you won't pick me up again?" I said, staring into his eyes.

His eyes thought it over for a second, "All right," he consented, "I won't pick you up again."

"Good," I said satisfied, "let's try this again then."

We walked over to where the other boys were standing, watching Gaara with narrow eyes. I put my hands out in a question, "So we gonna play or what?"

Sasuke nodded grimly and the rest of the boys followed. I got in my position, ready to rush Neji, Gaara at my side.

"Ok Gaara, you take the left and I'll take the right ok?" He didn't answer and I looked over at him briefly, curious as to why he didn't answer.

"Set HIKE!"

Oh well, no time to bother with it now.

_1 2 3 4 5_

**GO!!!!**

I ran at Neji, herding him left, expecting Gaara to come at him from the side. He did and I yelled at him, "Get him Gaara!"

"Ahhhhhhh!!!!" out of the blue, there was Chouji running straight at me, red faced and yelling at the top of his lungs. I didn't have time to dodge so I ran at him head on, planning to juke him and then shove him to the side so I could go help Gaara.

There was a blur.

I blinked and there was Gaara, holding Chouji back from me. And guess what? Neji was running down the field.

And then he made a touchdown.

"Gaara, what are you doing?" I said, irritation thick in my voice, "Why are you blocking Chouji for me when you're _supposed to be chasing Neji_?"

"Oh, my mistake. I thought this," he said jerking his thumb back at a disgruntled Chouji, totally straight faced and innocent looking, "was Neji."

I buried my face in my hands. "No," I groaned, "that is not Neji Gaara. That" I said pointing at Chouji's retreating back, "is Chouji."

I sat out with him during the next kickoff, pointing out each person and making sure he knew who they were.

When the next play started I was ready and I bounded up in front of Sasuke, my sights set on Chouji, who was readying himself to barrel down the street.

"Set...HIKE!"

Everyone ran out, weaving in between each other all trying to catch or intercept the ball. Gaara stood to my left and Shikamaru eyed him as he tried to calculate a way around. I watched Chouji, waiting for the charge.

"Rrroarr!" Chouji ran at Sasuke and I ran up to block him.

There was a blur.

Standing in front of me, once again, was Gaara, with one hand holding Chouji back and the other wrapped firmly around my waist holding me as far away from Chouji as possible.

And then guess what happened?

Shikamaru sacked Sasuke.

"Gaara," I said slowly, furiously, "Get. Off. My. Field."

He looked at me perplexedly. "What?"

"Get off my field _now_." I stepped away from him and pointed him off the street.

Sasuke came and stood behind me, "You heard her, if she says get off you better get the hell off."

Gaara looked at me, then back up at Sasuke, then back at me. He frowned and then turned around and walked off the street and up to the building. He sat on the sidewalk and leaned back against the wall. He looked at me, frowned again and closed his eyes.

I scowled and walked back to the game where we continued playing without Gaara.

**So what, you're just going to leave him there? You know he was just trying to protect you **

_Yea so? I made it as clear as it could possibly be that I didn't want him to and he didn't listen. So yea I'm gonna leave him there, what else can I do? I'm supposed to be protecting Sasuke, not being protected..._

**Wait...you thinking what I'm thinking?**

_Yup, I think I am _

**Oh goody**

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Gaara's POV

I walked off the street and sat down on the sidewalk, leaning against the building. I looked up at Sakura and saw she was looking over angrily at me. I frowned and shut my eyes.

Once my eyes were closed I slowed my breathing and tried to clear my thoughts. I focused on the point of light in my abdomen and then expanded it outward.

This only took three seconds to do and then, my whole vision was changed.

With my eyes still closed I could see everything in faintly colored chakra with glowing outlines. The building and cars were a fuzzy blue and the trees gave of a murky green light. I could see all the people inside and outside the building, all of them brighter and more solid than the inanimate objects and all of them in different colors. Some people were brighter than others however and my eye was drawn to three brilliant figures on the field.

One figure glowed blue, like lightning or the base of a flame. Another figure was something I'd never seen before, a body with two different colors of chakra, orange and pale blue and was crackling with energy. The third figure was the most shocking and it took me a moment to register what I was seeing.

Tongues of green fire licked out of her skin and she radiated energy, the flaming green chakra was Sakura!

I stared (with my eyes closed of course), I had never seen so much chakra in one person before! It almost seemed as if her body couldn't contain it. When I looked closer however I saw something concerning.

All over her body there were sickly looking black vines. They weaved around her body and clung to her like chains. I knew what they were but it was concerning to see them in such a multitude on her.

The black vines were pain. Everyone has them, including me, but some of us have more than others. They could be from an illness in body or mind or they could be the negative effects that were still clinging to a person from bad events in their life. Whatever the cause of them they hung in a depressing mass over Sakura's skin and I felt my face furrow in worry, why was my charge in so much pain?

I watched her for a while longer, cringing every time she collided with another body. It was taking every ounce of my self control not to move to her defense. As I watched I saw her turn towards me and I was puzzled over how long she stared at me. And then, to my great surprise, she started walking over to me.

I opened my eyes and looked up at her as she approached me. She stopped a few feet away and looked down at her hands which she had clasped before her.

"Gaara." She said hesitantly, "I'm sorry I yelled at you." Sakura sighed and looked up at me, "would you came back and play?"

I raised my eyes at her; she wanted me to come back?

Sakura waved her hands about, "Don't worry," she reassured me, "I have an idea."

I still felt a little cynical but I followed her back out onto the street anyway.

When we approached, the boys all stopped and looked from me to Sakura, all clearly thinking along the same lines as I was.

"Hey Sasuke," Sakura called, "toss me the ball."

He looked at her confused but then threw the ball to her. She walked back behind everyone, stopped, then turned around.

"Seeeeeet HIKE!"

They all looked at her surprised. "Wait," the one called Kiba said slowly, "You're QB?"

"Yes indeedy," Sakura said in a chipper voice. They all continued to stare at her, unmoving.

Sakura grinned back at them, "Trust me, I have an idea."

The boys still looked dubious but they all ran out anyway.

The two boys who I had earlier protected Sakura from approached her slowly from both sides. They leaned forward tensely for a moment and then burst forward in unison.

I didn't have to think, my body reacted on its own. I intercepted the fat one and sent him flying into the boy named Shikamaru. They both scrambled to their feet and again dashed at Sakura, who was looking around casually for an open receiver. I ducked down in between the twos flailing arms, rested my hands on their ribcages and shoved, sending them staggering to the ground.

I growled at them when they both struggled back upright. It looked as if they were preparing to rush me another time when out of the corner of my eye I saw Sakura throw the ball she was holding. I smirked when I saw Chouji and Shikamaru deflate in defeat, they were so naive thinking they could get past me. As if I would let them even _touch_ my charge. It was almost laughable.

The boy called Naruto had caught the ball that Sakura had thrown and had made his way down to the end of the field and was now dancing around the ball. The group dispersed, laughing and clapping one another on the back as they rowdily headed back inside.

I registered a blur of pink and then I was hit forcefully from the side and I found Sakura's arms wrapped around my torso in a tight hug.

"Gaara you were great!" she squealed into my chest. I looked down at her and my heart fluttered at her joyful smile.

"Of course I was." I said stiffly, detangling myself from her arms. Her eyes crinkled sadly in confusion at the rejection but a second later she was smiling again and skipping over to her stuff that was lying on the pavement.

I waited for her to come back and we headed inside together.

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Review!!!!

la la la review review review la la la la laaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!

REVIEW!!!!!!!


	5. Sakura's Case

Hello everyone!!!

here is chapter 5!!!

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Sakura's POV

The clock read 2:58. I sighed, stretching myself out, I was sooooo ready for the school day to be over…but then again…I looked to my right to look at the stoic scarlet haired boy sitting next to me. I frowned a little, today was over, what if tomorrow he decided to take me up on my offer and have nothing to do with me? It was so hard to tell with him whether or not he actually enjoyed being with me.

**Will you stop worrying? He likes us, I can tell**

_How can you tell? _

**Because, he's obviously not a touchy feely person or very 'enthusiastic' like we are but every time today that he could have easily lost us he stayed and waited so that we could catch up, so clearly he's not trying to ditch us. PLUS you saw him when we were playing football, he was so sweet and protective and strong and o my GOD he's just so hot and his muscles and his eyes and….**

_Ok ok I got it. That sort of made sense before you started babbling, but I guess we'll have to see tomorrow…_

"It's time to go."

I looked around at Gaara and then back at the clock.

"Oh, you're right. I guess we should go then huh?" I gathered my stuff and headed for the door, smiling when he followed me down the hall.

"So Gaara, where do you live?" I had been wondering that all day, hoping in the back of my mind that he lived close to my house.

"I live in the foothills on the north side of town."

"Oh that so cool!", I exclaimed gleefully, "I live on the far north side of town right up against the foothills! And no one ever lives anywhere close to me so this is just so cool!"

"You said that twice." He said looking over at me.

"Oh I did didn't I?" I said, a blush creeping up my cheeks, why does he make me do that so often! Urg!

We walked down the stairs together and then I stopped at a computer to clock myself in. You see I work at my school as an after school janitor. Sure it's not glamorous work but I personally prefer it to working in a fast food joint or something. Plus all my guys, Itachi, Sasuke, Naruto, Deidara, and Kiba work with me so they make it fun.

When I stopped Gaara kept walking until a few seconds later he stopped too, whipping his head side to side. It was pretty funny to watch. He spun around, his gaze landed on me and the panicked look in his eye faded instantaneously. He walked back and looked at the computer I was entering my password into.  
"What are you doing?"

"I'm clocking in," I answered. "I work here after school so I clock in before I start so they know how much to pay me."  
I walked away from the computer and headed down the hallway. When I looked back I noticed with surprise that Gaara was following me

"Aren't you going home Gaara?"

He shrugged his shoulders, silent.

I shrugged mine back and continued on my way to the closet under the stairs.

When I reached it I headed straight in to get my vacuum. I was the first one here today so I got the lighter vacuum and the better hose. Yeah!

**You're such a dork **

_Well excuse me for being happy I got the better tools and therefore my job is easier. I personally think that deserves a yeah _

**Janitor dork **

_Hey at least I get a paycheck, how else am I supposed to take care of my beauty needs?_

**So true...we should get a haircut soon, our ends are splitting**

_good idea..._

When I came out of the closet (**haha!-came out of the closet!** _Oh shut up you_) I saw Gaara standing to the side of a group of boys who were cheerfully beating on each other.

"GUYS! KNOCK IT OFF!"

They turned to me.  
"Hey Sakura!" They chorused. Naruto beamed at me and casually swung his fist into Deidara's gut. Deidara in turn thumped Naruto over the head which caused Naruto to shove Sasuke into Itachi who then bumped Kiba to the ground, I watched cynically as they began once again to beat one another senseless.

I sighed, I would have to break it up _again._

I took my vacuum hose(which, for those of you who don't know is a long metal pole with a vacuum head at the end of it) and began to swing it amongst the tumbling boys. Gaara watched from the wall with a bored look on his face as I thrust the pole into the boys, forcing them to back, one by one, out of the group.

When it was finally down to Naruto and Sasuke I whapped them both soundly over the head.

They both turned to me with sullen looks on their faces.

"So, are you done?"

Naruto rubbed his head, "Why'd you have to hit so hard Sakura?"

"Because," I said, picking up my stuff and heading towards my section of the building, "Your head is hard. Get to work you guys, no more fighting on the job or Jiraiya will catch you again and you'll get your pay deducted."

When I turned down my hallway out of the corner of my eye I saw Gaara walk past me and continue on towards the front doors.

"By Gaara!"

He gave a lethargic wave and walked away.

I turned around and went back to work.

_Wonder what tomorrow's gonna be like..._

_-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_

I waited on the roof of the building for her to go home. I watched with my eyes closed as she danced around the classrooms she was vacuuming.

Eventually her ride pulled up in front of the building. I focused once again on the point of chakra in my abdomen. The light was expanded outward and now I focused on pulling the light inside of myself and sucking the color of my chakra in with it.

I looked down a moment later and was satisfied to see that I was completely invisible, no chakra outline showed against the roof of the building.

I opened my eyes and leapt lightly from the roof of the building to the car. Once I was there I got to work setting up an invisibility tent on the roof of the vehicle. You see, while I can become invisible I can only maintain it so long. It's like lifting weights with your chakra, eventually you have to stop. That's why our scientists have come up with portable shielding devices that you can take with you wherever you need them. Once they're set up you can't move them again but they'll create a stable invisibility shield that will last for years unless you detonate the device.

I settled underneath the shield and released my chakra back out into my body; a moment later Sakura got into the car and we were driving away.

As we drove though the streets my thoughts drifted over the day, remembering this morning, the football game and watching her dance while she worked.

_What a strange girl _

**She's unique. I'm very impressed with her.**

_Why?_

**Because of how well she communicates with you. From personal experience I can tell you that it is not the easiest thing to do. And there's another thing; have you ever been this responsive to anyone else?**

I sat there in silence, refusing to answer the obnoxious voice.

**The answer is no**

I stubbornly ignored him.

**So what do you think of her?**

I decided this question was unoffensive enough to answer

_She's...different. Her fierce independence surprised me. And how her mood shifts from second to second is bizarre But there's this innocence in her that's almost childlike and something about is just so...fragile. _  
**That almost sounded as if you were fond of her.**  
_Of course not. I'm just analyzing my charge. It will help me better look after her._  
_**Sure. **_  
_Why do you think she was in so much pain?_  
**I don't know. Maybe you should ask her  
**_humf_

The car pulled up to a green house. I watched as Sakura helped a small boy gather up his bear and shoes and ushered him into the house.

I became invisible once again and once they were safely inside I leapt onto the roof of the house. There I busied myself setting up a permanent outpost. (You may ask how I could set up anything seeing as I didn't have anything with me. This is where the scientists from my dimension come in once again. They've developed a type of container that can forms a vacuum of space into which about a ton of nonliving stuff can fit. The container is flat and rectangular and can be stretched out to potentially a mile wide to remove something and shrunk down to about two inches in length. You can remove something from it at anytime making it very useful in the field) The invisibility tent I activated was much larger and underneath it I set up a platform about 9ft wide and 18ft long. On this I set up a thermal tent that took up about half of the platform. Inside there was a sleeping bag (not that I would be using it much, having been an insomniac all my life) and my bear Ai.

Everything was set up so I turned into my tent to look over Sakura's files. I pulled out the holograms and began to read.

_Sakura Haruno_

_Dimension # 7_

_Gender: female_

_Birth date: 9/20/1991_

_Our investigation of Sakura Haruno first began in October of 1997. Intelligence seers(1) had been gathering information from the air elementals(2) when they heard a small group of the elementals conversing about a girl. The seers gathered enough information from the conversation to make multiple visuals which are attached.(some are from the first instance, others from later research)_

I moved the written hologram aside and pulled forward the file of visuals. When I opened the folder there were dozens of holographic sketches of a little pink headed girl. In one she was swinging at a playground, air elementals pushing her on her swing and talking with her. In another she was running around a small pine tree, playing with the flying elementals. In a third she was sitting behind a house, crying, elementals swirling around her in concern. I pulled the written hologram back to me and kept reading

_It was at this point that the seers who had made this discovery came to us in the research labs. We were very interested in this phenomenon; there had never been a recorded instance of anyone under the age of twenty-three being able to hear the air elementals. There have, however, been two other similar instances. In one case a young man of sixteen was able to talk with and direct water elementals. In the other case a young boy has been protected by very specific sand elementals since birth and has the ability to direct all earth elementals at will. _

Reminded that my sand was probably anxiously waiting for me to let it out I reached into my pocket and pulled out a tiny gourd. Our scientists had made it for me to carry my sand in while I was under cover. It had the same ability as the container I had used earlier and was fashioned after the gourd I usually carried on my back.

I opened the gourd and sand poured out until the tent was half filled. It swirled around my, inspecting me for any injury and petting me affectionately.

After it had calmed down I bent back over the holograms; I was curious who the other mentioned case was and hoped the might mention something else about it.

_When the first young man was able to interact with the elementals we in the research labs thought it was a miracle or a fluke. But since the discovery of the other two there has been a concentrated effort on the study of the gifted three and on research involving them. In the search some of our researchers found records from about 2,000 years ago that spoke of people like our three subjects. The records tell of four people, each with the ability to see and interact with one specific elemental group. These people are referred to as the four flames. Each flame was unique in their abilities and all of them excelled in different areas. However, there was one way in which they were the same and that was in the breadth of their incredible power. It is our theory that Sakura Haruno is one of the four flames and that the other two are also flames. Unfortunately our theory cannot be proven until the fire flame is discovered. _

_Therefore Sakura Haruno's case is still under investigation. _

_Though it has not yet been proven whether Sakura is a flame or not there has been some concern about her safety. The air elementals had discovered that Sakura had had dream visitors from the Danakya Dimension. They were so concerned that they deliberately came to our seers. They informed them that there were Danakian agents interested in Sakura and demanded that we put her under some sort of protection. We took this threat very seriously and therefore sent one of our most experienced fighters (and the potential earth flame), Gaara no Subaku to dimension 7 where he is currently guarding Sakura Haruno while continuing to support our research of her._

_**(**__(1)__Seers__-Seers are people with ability to hear elementals, advanced seers can see them but no seer has ever been able to actually speak with an elemental. Seers begin to show their ability to hear elementals in their early twenties. From this point on it takes at least ten years of intensive training in order to gain a full grasp of the elementals methods of communication. This time period is also important to the formation of trust between a seer and the elemental community. Seers are often employed as Intelligence Seers who work in the Intelligence Unit of the Defenders Dimension gathering information from other dimensions through the interdimensional elementals._

_(2)__Elementals__- Sentient beings of a base elemental form. Though their communication methods are different than that of the homo sapien they can think and communicate on a level as high as humans. Some seers argue that they can even communicate on an even higher level than humans because of their ability to convey thoughts, pictures, and emotions at the same time. There are four families of elementals; fire, water, earth, and air. Of these families there are branches, such as the branches of sand and clay off of the family of earth. Elementals are very secretive creatures and cannot be seen or heard by most other creatures. Some people have the inborn ability to hear elementals and with training they can become seers. Even seers, however, must overcome the extreme secretive behavior of the elemental; it takes years for a seer to develop a level of trust with a select group of elementals. There are also a few seers who can, to some extent, see elementals. These seers have tried to document what elementals look like. There are many different types of elementals and therefore there are no consistent forms among them but all elementals have one physical similarity. This is the fluidity of their bodies. Despite that some of them are composed of substances such as rock they do not appear to have a stable skeleton to which their bodies must adhere to.__**)**_

I stared at the hologram long after I'd finished reading. My mind flickered from one thought to another

_I'm a flame?_

_There are others?_

_Who's the water flame?_

_Sakura's the air flame?_

_Sakura needs protecting from Danakian agents?_

_The Danakians are interested in her?_

The flickering stopped and my mind honed in on one thought.

_Sakura's in danger_

**And that is why we are here**

_Right _

I turned off the hologram and lay out on my sleeping bag, my head resting next to Ai and my sand curling contentedly around me.

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So know you know

Pretty cool huh?

Deserves a review doesn't it?

YES!!!

SAY YES AND CLICK THE PRETTY GREEN BUTTON!!!!!


	6. It All Went Black

This is where it starts to get cool...muhahaha

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Sakura's POV

The next morning I found Gaara waiting in the art room. When I entered he looked up, met my eyes, and jerked his head to the chair next to him. He wanted me to sit next to him! So I did (of course). Little did I know that this was the beginning of our new routine.

Every morning for the next two weeks I would find him waiting for me in the Art room and then afterwards we would proceed together to the Chemistry lab where he sat silently next to me while I chattered cheerfully with Kiba and Sasuke.

After class we would, of course, have to separate into our respective changing rooms for P.E. but when I came out into the gym he was always waiting for me on the bleachers.

Tenten and Hinata had study hall with us so I would spend a lot of my time talking to them while he worked wordlessly beside me. But on the odd occasion that I actually decided to work he would always work with me and help me whenever I got stuck. (Honestly I think it's thanks to him that I'm passing Chemistry)

Lunch time was always my favorite part of the day. When it was nice enough Gaara and I would take our lunches outside and sit against the brick wall, warming ourselves in the sun. While we ate we would talk...well...ok...mostly I would talk, but I did get Gaara too talk sometimes too and I made a game of trying to learn new things about him. (I learned that his favorite color is brown, that his favorite food is, of all things, something called gizzard tongue, (whatever that is) and that he has an older sister and brother among other things) After we were done eating we would play football and our team would almost always win (and if we didn't it was because I'm not a very good QB)

The rest of the day was slow and sleepy, I would only fully regain consciousness after the 3 o'clock.

Spending time with Gaara was great and in the back of my mind...ok not the back of my mind, the front, I was falling for Gaara. (Fast I know, but hey what can you do?) He was always there, gently helping me and making me smile. His constant presence was never annoying as a lot of my friends thought it would be, it made me feel safe and happy. Even on my dark days Gaara made my world brighter and for the first time in my high school career I didn't look forward to going home because I had someone who made me feel at home anywhere, as long as he was there.

And as I started to like him more and more I also started to wonder...how does he feel about me?

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Gaara's POV

"Five more minutes to freedom! Yea Friday!"

I looked over to the source of the happy voice and watched as the pinkette beside me stretched out her limbs and wiggled her fingers.

She looked over at me, a smile on her face. "What are you doing this weekend Gaara?"

I shrugged

"Oh. Well if you want," she rummaged through her bag and pulled a piece of paper and a pen, "you can give me a call and we can go do something. If you get bored that is." she said, blushing.

I took the piece of paper from her and pocketed it without any intention to call her, why would I bother when I lived on her roof? ( well, mostly that is, I still had my house up in the mountains where I went to eat and shower at night)

She stood up, slinging her purse over her shoulder. "I'll be right back; I'm just going to the bathroom, kay Gaara?"

I nodded and closed my eyes as she left the room. I watched her flaming green chakra, wrapped in black twisting vines, walk out into the hallway and into the bathroom (at which point I averted my eyes, I'm not a perv or anything)

**Maybe you should 'give her a call' you know you want to, and it would be good for you to get out and do something with her**

_What are you talking about? I do everything with her_

**Not anything that lets her know of your intentions **

_What intentions?_

**Don't play dumb you stupid boy, I know you want her as your mate and it's time you admit it to yourself**

_I going to pretend you didn't just say that _

**Pretend all you want it doesn't change a thing and I am not going anywhere anytime soon**

I refocused on the hallway outside of the bathroom, determined to ignore my idiotic inner resident. Of all the stupid things to say...

It happened very suddenly.

One second everything was normal the next my chakra vision had gone entirely black and I felt a chill steal through me whole body.

_Sakura!_

I bolted upright and opened my eyes. With my eyes open everything looked normal but the chill was still there; something was here and Sakura was in danger.

I dashed out of the classroom and burst out into the bustling hallway. I looked up at the clock and realized that school had just gotten out; it would be all the more difficult for me to find Sakura.

I ran to the bathrooms but then stopped with my hand on handle, it was _girls_ bathroom, I couldn't go in there...

Out of the corner of my eye I saw the tall girl with brown buns, a friend of Sakura's.

I reached out and grabbed her arm, "You!"

She looked at me, startled, "Yes, me. What is it Gaara?"

"I need you to check inside the bathroom for me and see if Sakura's in there."

She shrugged, "Sure."

I waited outside the door ready to dash in there at the first hint of a scream. But Tenten came out without Sakura.

She looked at me, "She isn't in there, you should try by her locker."

I nodded and hurried towards our lockers though I was doubtful that she'd be there. With her level of chakra and its uncontained unstable state there was no way she wouldn't be able to feel the disturbance in the areas chakra and she would be very afraid. But where would she hide?

When I got to the lockers she wasn't there, but Sasuke was.

"Sasuke!"

He looked over at me and the girl named Ino peered over his shoulder.

"What?"

I grabbed his arm and dragged his a few feet away from the nosy blonde.

"Hey-what are you-"

"Where would Sakura go if she was afraid? Where would she hide?"

He looked at me confused, "What? What's wrong with Sakura?"

This was infuriating! Didn't he realize he was wasting time!

"Where would Sakura hide?"

"If Sakura was afraid? Probably in the janitor's closet, she used to hide there when she was upset-hey wait! What's wrong with Sakura!"

I was already gone and racing down the stairs. I whipped around the railing and threw open the door to the closet. I headed straight for the back, crouching down as the ceiling lowered. At first I didn't see her in the dim light, but then I heard a whimper from behind a stack of boxes.

I pushed the boxes aside and found Sakura curled up in a ball behind them. She looked up at me, terror in her eyes.

"Gaara!"

She flung herself at me and wrapped her arms around my waist, crying into my stomach. Relief flooded me, _she's not hurt_

"Gaara, Gaara something's out there. Something bad, Gaara I can feel it something bad is here."

"What's going on?"

I turned to look over my shoulder to see Sasuke Kiba and Naruto all looking down at us.

I gently untangled my self from Sakura's arms and led her by the hand out of the closet. Once we were out I looked around and found myself surrounded by a group of Sakura's friends.

Itachi stepped forward and pulled Sakura into his arms. She let go of my hand and buried her face in his chest still shaking. Sasuke, Deidara, Kiba and Naruto rounded on me.

"What's wrong with her? Why is she so upset?" Sasuke said, taking a step closer to me.

I opened my mouth to answer when I suddenly felt a wave of cold hit my back. I spun around to face the hallway and saw the air about fifty feet away start to move.

Sasuke grabbed my shoulder, "I said why is she ..." He had seen the moving air as well.

"What the hell is that?"

As we all watched the air twisted and contorted until it solidified in the form of a massive mountain lion. It smiled evilly at us and spoke in a deep purring voice.

"I'm here for Sakura."

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O MY GOD!!!

the lions gonna get Sakura!!!

Sakura-Help me Gaara!!!

Gaara-I won't help unless people leave reviews


	7. Emerald Fire

This is where it gets amazing folks

my first action scene ever!!

Please love it!!!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_Flashback---------------------------_

_I suddenly felt a wave of cold hit my back. I spun around to face the hallway and saw the air about fifty feet away start to move._

_Sasuke grabbed my shoulder, "I said why is she ..." He had seen the moving air as well._

_"What the hell is that?"_

_As we all watched the air twisted and contorted until it solidified in the form of a massive mountain lion. It smiled evilly at us and spoke in a deep purring voice._

_"I'm here for Sakura."_

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I pushed my way through circle of boy, placing myself between the lion and Sakura.

"You can't have her"

**You cannot have her** Shukaku we said simultaniously.

It paced back and forth to the juncture where the hallways met, its massive body needing the extra space. The mountain lion was eye level with my 5'5'' tall stature and it had to be over 6' long, its long tail twitching as it moved. It examined me with its burning orange eyes, as if trying to decide if it was worth the effort to respond to my challenge.

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Out of the corner of my eye I saw Sakura struggle to untangle herself from the protective arms of the other boys.

"What do you want with me?" she said defiantly, her voice still rough and croaky from her weeping.

"Be quiet Sakura," I said sharply, my eyes still trained on the pacing cat.

"But-"

"Please Sakura," I said, my voice strained, "just trust me."

"...ok"

"Very wise Gaara no Subaku."

I blinked in surprise, the lion knew my name?

It smiled again, "Oh yes _Agent Subaku_, I know who you are, though I don't know much else. You're a very well protected secret within the Defenders Dimension. However," he said. "From the very little I did manage to unearth it appears that you are one of the elite warriors of your dimension."

The lion paused, tilting it's head thoughtfully. "I'm actually surprised to see you here _Agent Subaku_." It said, pronouncing my title with dripping sarcasm, "I underestimated those fools in your research department; I never guessed that they would realize how important the girl is. That of course, was my oversight."

"Now," the lion said, stopping mid pace and settling into a crouch, "I'll be taking Sakura."

Fire coursed through my limbs as my chakra rose up in rage. I focused the fire into my hands and a long spear with claw like blades glowed in my hands. The spear solidified into sand colored stone and I held it up, poised to strike.

"Go to hell."

The mountain lion let out a purring chuckle, "This should be fun."

And then...he sprang

I spun the spear in my hands and bashed he butt of the weapon into the side of the lions head as it hurtled toward me. It flew to the side, crashing into the wall and rolling back onto it's feet before jumping at me again.

I thrust forward with my spear and the lion twisted to the side as it tried to avoid my blade.

As it landed I swept my spear down and the outer blade sliced shallowly into the cat's shoulder.

The lion screamed in fury and ran towards me. I thrust me spear forward and it swerved away to avoid the blades.

And then I was yanked to the ground.

As the cat had passed it's tail had wrapped around my ankle and pulled my feet out from underneath me and before I could stand up the lion was on top of me, it's paws pinning my shoulders to the ground.

"Game over Agent Subaka"

"No!!! Don't hurt him!!"

The lion whipped it's head to the side and it's mouth curled into an evil smile. I strained to see past its paws but all I could see was a flash of pink running at the lion and I.

_Oh god no_

The lion was up off of me and I sprang to me feet looking around. In that instant I saw and processed everything. The lion was bounding towards Sakura who had escaped the boys who were now chasing after her, terror on their faces as they realized they could never make it in time to save her.

Something happened to me and I felt a power surge through my body, different than any I had ever felt before, driving me forward, over taking the lion by just an instant and shoving Sakura out of the way of the lions reach.

And then there was pain, searing across my shoulder and down my back.

"Gaara!!"

From where I lay I saw Sakura freeze, staring at me in horror and I struggled to get up, to tell Sakura to run away but I couldn't move, I couldn't breathe.

The lion began to laugh, "You protector's fallen Sakura, come with me quietly and I won't have to hurt the others."

Sakura squeezed her eyes shut and her face twisted as if she was trying not to explode. As I watched the air around her started blow and her hair whipped around her face. The wind blew faster and faster until she was surrounded by a whirlwind and the lion the boys and I all watched in shock and amazement as the green flames I recognized as her chakra began to lick out of her skin, enveloping her body in transparent emerald fire.

Her eyes snapped open and I stared at them. They weren't the eyes that I had come to know, they were glowing orbs that overwhelmed her face and she stared at the lion with a rage in her eyes that I had never dreamed her capable of.

She stepped in front of me and held her hand out to the lion. In her hand a flaming bolt grew, a barely contained branch of pure destructive energy.

The lions eyes widened and it took a step back.

Sakura spoke and her voice was rough and feral.

"Don't touch them."

The lion stepped forward again, "Who's going to stop me?"

She took another step forward, "Me."

With a growl the lion leaped forward and Sakura screamed in rage as she threw her bolt.

The bolt hit the lion straight in the eye and it screamed in pain as the bolt sank into it's skin and absorbed into it's face. The cat reared back and then fell forward, disappearing in a haze of smoke.

Sakura turned back to me, still burning and knelt by my side. She reached out her hands and rested them softly on my back, her fire flowing out onto my skin. I felt the pain recede until it had gone completely and I sat up looking into her still glowing eyes.

I saw her eyes slid shut and for a moment she wavered there, as if she was fighting to stay awake before she fell sideways, the fire around her flickering out.

I caught her as she fell and held her gently in my arms. Her face was peaceful now and she nestled her face into me, smiling in her sleep.

"What the hell is going on."

I looked up to see all five boys standing around me, their faces a mix of anger fear and worry.

Sasuke crouched down next to me and glared into my eyes. "Tell me what the fuck is going on Gaara."

"Alright," I sighed, there was no way I could lie my way out of this one, "I'll tell you."

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OMG!!!!!

wasn't that just amazing???!!!!!

Don't I deserve a review!?!!??


	8. Sounds Like a Yogurt

Lots of explaining here

if you still have questions then review and ask me and I'll try to explain it to you

and if I totally just spaced it and didn't put that information in there and I should of then I will go back and add

also

I did alot of editing here and I totally changed the entire Sakura half of the chapter

if you haven't read this than that doesn't really matter to you but **If you **_**HAVE**_** read this before and you were just at the next chapter and had read my note to come back here go read Sakura's half of the chapter**

it's the same for the first little bit but then it changes in a really drastic and important way

Read on!

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_-Flashback-_

_I looked up to see all five boys standing around me, their faces a mix of anger fear and worry._

_Sasuke crouched down next to me and glared into my eyes. "Tell me what the fuck is going on Gaara."_

_"Alright," I sighed, there was no way I could lie my way out of this one, "I'll tell you."_

The boys still stood around me, unmoving and glaring.

I glared back at them, "Look-if you want me to tell you anything then sit down. I'm not going to talk up the whole time."

They sat down grudgingly. Itachi made a move to pull Sakura into his lap but I pulled her closer; she was staying right where she was.

He glared at me again and straightened, crossing his arms, "Who are you Gaara-if that even is your real name?"

"I am Agent Gaara no Subaku, previously an elite Striker and currently a Dog assigned to Sakura Haruno." I said, staring him down.

He stared back at me, clearly intent on winning this match, "What the hell is a striker? And what do you mean you're a 'dog' assigned to Sakura?"

"A Striker is a trained killer who works for a branch of the Defenders dimension and when I say elite it means that I am _very_ good at what I do." I said, my voice threatening, "A Dog is someone who guards someone, to prevent them from being killed."

Naruto leaned forward, a careful examining look replacing the glare and I turned to face him as he spoke, "You're from a different dimension?"

"Yes," I said, "I am. I'm from dimension 1, know as the Defenders dimension. This is dimension 7."

"How many dimensions are there?" Kiba said, leaning forward as well.

"We believe there are 7." I answered.

"So you don't know for sure how many there are?" Deidara asked, raising his eyes.

I searched for a way to explain this-then I remembered explaining something in Chemistry to Sakura. "It's like the table of elements. Someone figured out the original table but he couldn't fill in all the spaces. He didn't know _what_ belonged in those spaces but he knew _something _did. We don't know what dimensions are missing in the dimension ring-we just know they _are_."

"You keep saying 'We'. Who's 'We'?" Itachi said, still glaring.

"'We' is the people of the Defenders dimension. I said simply.

"Yes, but _who are_ the people of the Defenders dimension? And why are you called that in the first place?" Itachi said, exasperated.

"The Defenders dimension and its people are exactly what the name suggests. We are defenders; we protect all the other dimensions-including yours

"And what," Deidara said, again raising his eyes quizzically, "do _we_ need protecting from?"

I shifted Sakura into my lap, pulling her against me and encircling her protectively with my arms,

"Danakya."

I heard a snort to my left and I turned to see Kiba chortling and looking at me incredulously.

"Danakya?" he said, still chuckling, "that sounds like a yogurt."

I glared at him until his laughter died out and he squirmed uncomfortably under my gaze.

"That lion," I said gravely, "was a Danakian agent. It's and its people's goal is to bring all of the dimensions into slavery under them. They are evil incarnated and in _no way _are they funny."

Kiba looked down and mumbled an incoherent apology.

Naruto looked at me with horror. "Why do they want to enslave everyone?"

"Because they believe that they are superior to all other beings and that it is their natural right to be above all others."

They settled into horrified silence and I looked across the circle and watched Sasuke's face; he had been strangely quiet through this whole conversation.

Sasuke looked up slowly, meeting my eyes with an intense stare; it was not competitive as Itachi's had been and it burned with purpose.

"Why," he said slowly, the smoldering fire in his voice, "do they want Sakura?"

I looked back at him, liking what I saw in his eyes. "The researchers from my dimension believe she is something called a Flame. They believe that I am one as well. I think that has something to do with it but I don't really know. All I know is that she has met this lion and possibly other Danakians in her dreams and that her elementals told our researchers because they feared that something like this would happen."

Deidara looked at me, seriousness finally replacing that irritating quizzical look. "Her elementals?"  
"Yes, Sakura can speak to air elementals and has been friends with them since she was a small child."

Sasuke murmured to himself.

I looked at him, "What?"

He looked back up at me, "Sakura told me about that a long time ago. She said she had an invisible friend and that it told her to talk to me. It's how we became friends."

I looked at him with a new respect; apparently the elementals saw something of value in him.

"Gaara," Naruto said looking at me intensely, "can we learn to do what you did when you fought that lion?"

I looked at him, wondering where he was going with this. "We are the same species, so I would assume so"

"Well," Naruto said, leaning back, "It looks like we'll be seeing a lot of each other then doesn't it?"

I looked at him-what was he talking about? "What are you talking about?"

"Well you're going to be teaching us to help you protect Sakura aren't you?" He said matter of factly, leaning back with his hands behind his head.

I looked at him incredulously, "I will not!"

All around me the boys voiced cries of outrage. I glared around at them. "Sakura is _my_ charge. It is up to me to protect her; not a bunch of boys who don't know their chakra from pretty colored lights."

Itachi glared back at me, "Sakura is our friend Gaara. We may never admit it to her out loud but we all love her; she's what brings us all together, if we had never met Sakura Sasuke and I still would not be talking, Naruto and Deidara would still hate each other and Kiba would have never talked to any of us. We _need_ her."

Sasuke shifted and I looked back at him and found his eyes burning again, "Is there any other way for you to send for more help Gaara?"

I looked down, uncomfortable for the first time, "Not for another 2 weeks."

"Then you need us." He said, "We're all the back up you're going to get and what if there's more next time? What will happen to Sakura then?"

I looked back up at him, the truth in his words ringing in my mind. He stared back at me and I held up my hand, asking him to wait as I closed my eyes.

_Do you think they can help?_

_**I know they can-I sense the other flame among them**_

_How can you sense the other flame?! _

_**I will explain later**_

He sensed my doubt

_**On my honor I will-but I tell you the truth, you need them. There is no other way to protect the girl and if you are not a fool-and I know you are not-you will teach them everything as quickly as you can**_

_Do you believe this is the only way?_

_**It is**_

_Fine_

I opened my eyes again and looked around at the boys. "I will teach you. I'll send a message at the next full moon but I will teach you everything I can until help arrives."

Sasuke gave a small nod of approval.

"Wait-so that old superstitious stuff about the full moon having special powers is true?" Kiba said with a look of amazement.

"Yes," I said, "the full moon opens up a portal between the dimensions- the only people who can travel between dimensions at any other time are the messengers."

Deidara looked at me with that annoying quizzical look back on his face, "Well then why don't you have these messengers come and help you protect Sakura?"

This was so frustrating; it was like explaining things to a class of children trainees. "Because they can't fight; messenger's chakra works very differently than normal people's chakra which gives them the ability to travel between dimensions but because of how differently their chakra works they are completely powerless in a fight."

"Ohhhhh."

Sakura stirred in my arms and I looked down at her in alarm. Her eyes were twitching and she looked as if she could wake any second.

"Listen," I said, looking around urgently, "When Sakura's inner nature took over she wasn't consciously aware of what was going on and when she wakes up she won't remember anything that happened. And it has to stay that way because if she knows _anything_, anything at all, it will be easier for the Danakians to find her in her dreams, which would mean that more of them could find her in the physical world as well. We have to tell her that she fell and hit her head or something. She cannot know what happened."

"But what about us? We know; does that mean that the Danakians can find us too?" said Naruto.

"They're not looking for you." I said, the frustration leaking into my voice.

"Alright alright." Naruto said, putting his hands up, "We won't tell her, will we guys?"

Around the circle there were sounds of agreement from the boys.

"And you," Naruto added, "will be teaching us. Starting when?"

Sakura's eyes began to flutter open, "Tomorrow," I promised, "We'll start Tomorrow."

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Sakura's POV

**Ugg...I hurt all over...What happened?**

_I don't' know...I think someone's holding us...?_

I opened my eyes and looked up, blearily blinking. I saw red and I blinked again and Gaara's face came into focus.

"Gaara!" I said in surprise, "What are you doing here? And wait...why are you holding me again?"

I sat up in Gaara's lap and looked around. Sitting in a half circle in front of us were all the boys and they were watching me attentively.

"Sakura!" Naruto exclaimed, "We were so worried about you!"

"You idiot," Sasuke said, "You were sliding down the stair rail again and you fell over backwards."

"You could have been killed!" Kiba and Deidara exclaimed together,

"Don't ever do that again young lady, do you understand me?" Itachi said fiercely.

I smiled weakly at them, "Oh is that why I hurt all over? I'm sorry for worrying you guys; I won't do it again, I promise." I looked back at Gaara, "Not to be rude, but why am I in your lap?"

"Gaara's the one that found you." Naruto said, "He picked you up off the stairs and hasn't put you down since."

"Oh...thank you Gaara." I said, smiling warmly at him at him.

"You're welcome." he said stiffly as usual. But then he looked down and met my eyes and I saw how worried they were.

"Don't worry Gaara," I reassured him, "I'm fine, see?" I stood and started stretching out my limbs. "Ouch, oh, I'm just a little sore that's all."

Gaara jumped to his feet and pulled my arms down from their stretching. "Don't do that!" he said, "You might have pulled something."

"Ok, no stretching then, just working." I said as I took a step towards the closet.

I felt a hand lock around my wrist and I looked back to see Gaara's hand gently holding onto me.

"You're not working today." he said, as he gently pulled me back from the closet.

"But-!" I protested, "Who's gonna do my stuff?"

"I will!" the boys all cried. I looked back at them and saw the worry still on all of their faces.

"You took a pretty nasty fall Sakura," Itachi said kindly, "Why don't you rest for the day?"

"You sure? Cause I feel fine..."

Itachi crossed his arms, "We're sure Sakura"

"Ok," I said dubiously, "If you guys really insist."

"We do!" they said firmly.

I smiled at them; they really take such great care of me! "Thanks guys," I said, "you're the best."

Gaara started walking away, gently tugging me behind him, "See you later guys!"

"Bye Sakura!" they chorused as they disappeared around the corner.

I smiled down at the hand encircling my wrist, "Thanks Gaara" I said softly.

"hn"

I looked up to find myself a few inches from his back. I froze, blinking in shock, and did a double take. His navy shirt was in shreds that hung loosely off his body and there was, o my god, was that _blood_?!

_Wait, WHAT!!!_

**Holy shit man Holy shit!!!!**

It _was_ blood!!!!

"Gaara!" I exclaimed in horror, "what happened to your back?"

He tugged me forward causing me to stumble up to his side, putting his back out of sight. I waited for a moment but he didn't respond

"Gaara seriously are you ok? What happened?"

He kept walking and looking straight ahead, "Nothing happened."

I stopped and tried to pull out of his grasp. He stopped a couple steps ahead of me but didn't let go of my wrist.

"Let go Gaara."

"No."

"Let _go_ Gaara."

"No."

I gritted my teeth but didn't try to keep pulling; if that was how he was going to be there was no way that I would be able to pull free. Instead I stepped forward and gently touched the skin under the rags that hung from his shoulders. The skin beneath the fabric was smooth and warm and completely unbroken, so the dark damp liquid the stained his shirt couldn't be blood...could it?

To be sure I leaned forward, putting my nose up to the fabric and took a deep sniff. I gagged at the smell; it was _definitely_ blood.

"Gaara please," I begged softly, "please tell me what happened."

Still stone silent he dragged me forward again and walked briskly through a pair of doors, leading us outside and into the sunshine. I squinted against the sudden glare and didn't fight him as he guided me firmly and gently past the children's playground and toward the elementary section of the building.

Suddenly he broke the silence, "Your little sister," he said, "her gymnastics class ends now does it not?"

"Yes..." I said, a little thrown of by his formal speech, "why?"

Gaara stopped; we had come to the front of the school where, a hundred yards away, a small stream of mothers and little children in stretchy outfits trickled through.

He jerked his head towards them and I looked to see my mother, little brother, and little sister all standing together, my mom talking to another one of the parents.

"Go home Sakura" he said, finally releasing my wrist.

I felt a burning feeling rising in me. It filled me like hot gas and my ears started to ring, _go home_? He wasn't going to answer my question, wasn't to tell me what was going on, didn't care that I was worried? He was just going to drag me around and then tell me to _go home_?

"No."

He turned back to look at me his blue eyes flashing like steel and I glared back up at him, daring him to try and do something and see where that got him.

"Go home Sakura." he said slowly, in a deep frightening voice that made me tremble and recoil. I felt some of the hot resolve suddenly seep out of me in a whoosh.

**NO! **

I stiffened my spine, feeling the heat suddenly expand to fill me again, and stood as tall as I could. "No! I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what's going on!"

Gaara looked at me steadily, "Nothing's going on Sakura, now _go home_."

"No!" I screamed, enraged, "I am _not_ going to go home! You can't just drag me around and tell me what to do and then go and _lie_ to me 'nothings going on' like I'm some little _kid_! I'm not a _child_ Gaara!"

He watched me, remaining silent even after my out burst. I waited for him to say something, anything. Tears started to roll down my cheeks and I wiped them away angrily.

"Please Gaara," I said, my voice breaking, "please don't do this. Please don't shut me out."

His expression was blank, unreadable and uncaring. It cut at my soul until I felt just like his shirt; shredded and covered in blood.

Suddenly he turned around and began to walk back the way we had come, "See you on Monday Sakura."

I stared at his back in shock-he was leaving? He was just going to walk away?

"Fine," I sobbed, "Just walk away then. See if I care!"

He kept walking as if I had said nothing. I stared at his retreating rag clad back, a burning clawing feeling scraping away my insides. It pushed and slashed until suddenly a dam somewhere inside burst. Wrenching my eyes away and I turned and ran the other way, sobs ripping out of my throat.

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So yes as you can see there was ALOT of change in this chapter

which also made it longer which to me is always a good thing:)

but I realized after I wrote and published this chapter the first time that there was a really important flaw to it

that Gaara's shirt was no longer ripped and bloody or that somehowSakura never even notices

and on top of that him smiling after all that seemed off to me

that's actually what got me thinking about this chapter in the first place and then I was all "Omgosh I totally screwed that up!'

people you gotta tell me when I do stupid things like this!

goodness....


	9. Shukaku's Story

**_Very Very VERY IMPORTANT!!!!!!!!!!!!!_**

**BEFORE YOU READ THIS CHAPTER YOU NEED TO GO BACK AND READ THE SAKURA POV PART OF THE LAST CHAPTER**

**I TOTALLY REWROTE IT!!!!!!**

yes so I went back and was rereading the last chapter and I felt like how it ended just did not fit

and then I realized I had made a terrible terrible plot flaw

so I freaked and rewrote the entire end of the chapter

and **it is so dramatically different that you must go back and read it for this and the 11th chapters to make sense**

so go!

Go back!

and _then _come back and read this extra shiny new chapter

and as far as this shiny new chapter goes I'm sorry I took so long to write it

you see the plot bunnies came and kidnapped me and we had to have a _long_ talk in order to sort some things out

we're still in the middle of negotiating on whether some people get to live or not but as for now we've come to some sort of compromise

(maybe if you send some treats in your reviews for me to give the plot bunnies the negotiations for the next chapter will go quicker)

**GUESS WHAT?????**

**I'm done with the next chapter!!!!**

**Yes it's short but as soon as I get enough reviews for THIS chapter then I'll post it!**

**and I'm already working on the next chapter after THAT!**

**WOOT!**

anyways read on!

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Gaara's POV

I sat on the edge of my platform anxiously staring up into the black clouds above. Here, on top of everything else, was another problem that I had to deal with.

Because of the black moon last night I hadn't been able to go to my house and wash up and after everything today I _really_ needed to shower and change, as Sakura's reaction to my back clearly showed...

_Sakura..._

I hurriedly pushed the thought away. I would deal with that later, right now I had to figure out how I was going to get cleaned up without leaving Sakura unguarded. I couldn't take her with me, what if she woke up? How would I explain _that_?

I considered taking a shower in her bathroom but dismissed the idea immediately. One, I didn't have a change of clothes here and two, being caught in her bathroom would be even harder to explain than her waking up in mine.

But I couldn't leave her unguarded after today and there was no one else who could guard her....

I slapped my palm against my forehead. Of _course_ there was someone else who could guard her! How could I be so stupid?

_**Took you quiet a while to figure that out pup**_

_Well why didn't you say anything?_

_**Because it is good for the young to struggle. I believe it is said to build character**_

_And you don't think that maybe I've struggled enough today? _

_**...We will discuss that later, send your message and we'll talk after he arrives**_

_hn_

I watched as a ribbon of sand rose up from the expanse that rested around me and flew away over the rooftops.

A few minutes later I felt a pull in the dimension fabric and I heard the rustle of leaves behind me.

"Gaara," my mentor said as I heard him approach me, "What's up? Why the summons?"

I stood, avoiding my mentor's eyes. "I need to go clean up and I can't leave Sakura alone, can you watch her until I get back?"

"Are you going to explain what's going on?"

I sighed, "When I get back….I have alot to tell you."

Kakashi plopped down where I had been sitting and pulled his little orange book from his pocket. "Well then," he said, without looking up, "you'd best be going."

I nodded curtly and reached out in front of me. I felt around with my chakra for a moment before finding a fold in the dimension fabric. I grasped it firmly between my fingers, tugged it open and was swallowed by blackness.

I've never liked traveling through the fabric of a dimension. It's an entirely different thing than traveling between dimensions because when you travel between dimensions you choose your exit beforehand and once you make the dimension jump the fabric just gives you a spin and pops you out into the other dimension. However when you travel _through_ a dimension it's as if you're floundering around underneath the fabric which is made even more uncomfortable by the fact that the dimension fabric makes it very clear that it does not _want_ you there. It's like the fabric is conscious of you creating a bump underneath it's crisply ironed surface and it wants to iron you out until you fit it's perfectly pleated and starched shape. While I know that traveling through a dimension is incredibly handy since it's the fastest way to travel and it can be used every day of the lunar cycle, with the exception of the black moon, I've still never liked it.

Once I was completely surrounded by the black underside of the dimension fabric I focused my mind on where I wanted to come out. When I found it I twisted the dimension fold I still held in my hand and tugged it open again, stepping out onto the porch of a two story cabin. I didn't bother looking around to see if anyone had seen a teenage boy appear out of thin air, not only was it pitch black outside but my cabin was settled high into the recesses of the mountains and over 3 miles away from any one else. No one in their right mind would be anywhere near my place at this time of night.

Despite the blackness, having been born with the ability to see in the dark (something that I suspect may have to do with Shukaku), I could still see clear as day and I was easily able to punch in a password onto a keypad to the side of the glass door that would have otherwise been invisible.

The keypad beeped back at me and I slipped inside, the door closing silently behind me without so much as a click. I stalked past the cold neglected kitchen and went straight to the small room in the back right corner of the house where I proceeded to strip my clothes off and toss them, with the exception of my mangled blue shirt which I threw into my usually unused trashcan, into the small washing machine.

I started the load going and was about to leave when I noticed a folded up piece of paper that had fallen to the floor. I reached down and picked it up but I didn't unfold it-I didn't need to-because I remembered right away what it was. It was the number that Sakura had so cheerfully and innocently given me this afternoon-had it really only been this afternoon?-right before all of the insanity had started. And now here I was, holding a thread of friendship and communication with someone who, only a few hours ago, would probably have picked up the phone, elated that I had called, and talked happily for who knows how long about who knows what, but who would now, most likely, hang up the phone the minute she realized it was me…

I slammed a lid on those thoughts and searched desperately for something to distract me.

_Shukaku!_

_**Yes pup?**_

_You promised earlier that you would explain how you could sense a flame-start explaining_

_**sigh…alright pup but it is a long story, continue with your bathing ritual as I tell it**_

_Fine_

I left the laundry room and opened the door to my right, stepping into my echoing cavernous bathroom. I crossed the cold black marble and set the piece of paper on the bathroom counter before I let myself into my large glass shower. I started the water and let it flow down me for a moment until I felt the welcome heat seep into my bones.

_The story?_

……_**...……….long ago-long before any society of man was created-I was born in one of the dimensions your scientists have yet to discover. I wasn't born a small weak creature as you humans are born or I would never have survived, my parents not being the most nurturing of creatures.**_

I squirted shampoo into my hands and lathered my hair, scratching against my scalp as I worked the soap down to my roots.

_**I grew up wild and blood thirsty, very much like most of the others of my kind-those who were not strong or fierce enough did not last long in my world-and I did not care for anyone else's well being but my own. That was, until I found Mimic..................................................**_

I rinsed out my hair and reached for the loofah sponge that was sitting on the marble shelf beside my shoulder. I frowned at it in my hand as I squeezed out a blob of smelly body wash onto it. The loofah I suspected was another of the many tokens from my siblings that I had been finding all around the house. The body wash I knew came from Temari because she had dragged me out shopping for it a few months before I left, insisting that I needed a 'signature scent' but I suspected that the loofah was Kankuro's idea of a joke.

I realized that I had been drifting in my own thoughts for a while and that Shukaku had gone quiet.

_Shukaku?_

_**..............I'm sorry pup.....I will continue..............I had been out hunting one day when I passed by a river and saw a woman bathing. I had never seen a human before and though she was not human she wore a humanoid form. It was certainly not one that could ever be confused for a human but she was...............beautiful. I approached her and I was amazed when, instead of running away, she threw rocks at me for seeing her bathing and threatened to turn me into a towel.**_

_She threatened to turn_ you_ into a towel?_I said, reaching for a towel myself. I roughly scrubbed my hair dry before wrapping it around my waist and stepping back out onto the now even icier marble.

_**Yes**_ Shukaku chuckled, the sound ringing like nails in a can, _**Mimi was always the spitfire **_

_Mimi? I thought you said her name was Mimic?_

_**Mimi is what I came to call her but her full name was Mimic because mimicking was what she did, she was a shapeshifter**_

_What happened after she threatened to turn you into a towel?_

_**Well after I had been thoroughly chastised Mimi decided that she would rather follow me around and bother me than turn me into a towel and after our first meeting we were rarely apart........eventually one thing led to another and we became mates in the truest sense. For one hundred years I was the happiest creature alive and then....................................she died.......................................................................................**_

I waited for him to continue, brushing my teeth through the silence. I usually didn't notice the closeness between Shukaku and I but right now I felt that I was intruding on something personal simply by existing in my own brain. Shukaku had never shared anything about his past before and I hadn't really stopped to think about him as more than someone who lived inside me. Once, back when I was a kid, I had asked him why I had him inside my mind when no one else did but he hadn't told me and I had never again stopped to wonder what he was doing here and if he had ever had another life. I wasn't quite sure what to think of all this and I didn't know what I was going to do if Shukaku didn't start talking again because I didn't think I could bring myself to ask him what happened next.

_**I am sorry pup. This is not pleasant for you to hear but it is necessary to understand everything. I will try and finish the tale as quickly as I can **_

_hn_

_**.............Mimi loved to travel and she decided one full moon that we were going to travel to what you now call the Defenders Dimension. I agree to go along thinking that it would be like any of our other trips.........................when we arrived Mimi decided that she wanted to bathe and she sent me to go find some food leaving her alone.................when I got back there was blood everywhere and besides Mimi's body was a panting woman covered in Mimi's blood..........................**_

_**What happened next can only be described as me losing my mind. I tried to kill the woman and would have succeeded if it were not for her three friends that came to her aid. My madness blurred everything and I do not remember how they did this but the next thing I knew I had been captured within a cage of four different chakras and I was thrust inside a man's mind without a body and unable to escape. **_

I had left the bathroom and was now up in my loft, sifting through my chest of clothes. I extracted some red boxers, a pair of dark jeans and a long sleeved dark gray shirt with red stitching along the hems. I pulled them on unceremoniously and after gently sliding the piece of paper back into my pocket I lay out on the bed as I listened.

_**I raged for months, nearly driving the man to madness himself but through it all he tried to explain to me what had happened. Slowly my sanity returned and I was able to listen to the story he told me. It had not been the women who had killed Mimi but a Danakian who had happened across her as she bathed. It had fought with her and was about to kill her when the woman found them. The woman, who was also the air flame, grabbed Mimi just as the creature tried to finish her off. She tried to fight off the Danakian and ended up killing the creature just before I got back. But it was too late for Mimi...........................................the man whose mind I had been trapped inside was the earth flame and the others who had helped to capture me were the other flames though at the time they did not call themselves that. Since I had finally come back to my senses the earth flame, whose name he told me was Kohaku, offered to let me go but I refused. I had nothing left to live for and I had no will to do anything so to me living in Kohaku's mind was agreeable. Over time the he and I became friends and we lived together companionably until the day he died. **_

_**When Kohaku died I figured that I had died with him but then when you were born I woke up, as if I had just been asleep. Somehow the earth flames powers were passed down through 2,000 years and I along with them. **_

_**I can sense the presence of the fire flame because it was the flames that imprisoned me in the first place. **_

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"Kakashi."

"Gaara, you're back."

"Sit back down, this is going to take awhile."

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I sat on the edge of the roof contemplating the stars, thinking on everything that had happened and all that I had learned today. Kakashi had gone home after a long talk during which we had come up with a plan for how to defend Sakura while training the other boys. Kakashi would be their main teacher while I continued to guard Sakura and tomorrow he would go around collecting them for their first lesson. I smirked a little at the thought of what awaited the unsuspecting young men. Kakashi was a _very_ good teacher but his methods were not always the most pleasant.

_**Pup**_

_hn?_

_**There is something else that we must discuss**_

_There is?_

_**Today when you fought the lion you did very poorly. To be blunt you lost**_

_........._

_**I have known you since you were born and I have experienced every battle that you have ever been in and because of this I know that you have faced ten times the odds you faced today and come out without a scratch. While I know not having your sand in battle with you puts you at a disadvantage you should have been able to defeat this enemy but instead you were distracted and unfocused. It is only due to that momentary burst of power and Sakura's sudden access to her own powers that kept harm from coming to her. **_

_......_

_**You must do something to remedy this. I know what you are capable of and you must, you MUST find a way to stop yourself from being distracted by your worries for her because losing **_**cannot**_** be an option**_

_..................I know I-_

"Mmm!..."

I stiffened and listened carefully to the sounds from the open window below me. I slept right above Sakura's room and I had never before heard anything from her once she had fallen asleep. At first I heard nothing and I wondered if the sound had been my imagination. Then I heard her panicked cry.

"Get away!"

Like lightning I swung myself off of Sakura's roof and onto her window ledge, my sand swirling around me and my body coiled, ready to spring at the first sign of a threat. I rapidly scanned Sakura's room for any signs of an intruder but I saw nothing but dirty laundry on the floor and the fluttering scarves she had hung around the room. Confused, I turned my eyes back to Sakura's bed to see her with her eyes closed and her face scrunched up. It looked as if she was having a nightmare and as I watched she twisted in her bed and whimpered softly, a tear sliding from the corner of her eye into her tangled pink hair.

_What?..._

_**Remember what her elementals told the seers? There was more than one dream visitor. The other Danakians may be hunting her in her sleep.**_

What Shukaku said was actually very likely so I closed my eyes and focused my chakra vision before looking back at the sleeping girl.

Now with my chakra vision enabled I could see that around her flaming green, vine ridden figure were the ghost colors of other chakras. There was a pale slimy looking neon green chakra that seemed to slither across her body and there were grey and black and white puffs of chakra that flitted around her as well. I didn't know who these chakra's belonged too but there was one chakra color that I recognized immediately. But instead of one there were two burning orange chakras stalking across her sleeping form, one flickering feebly but still there.

I glared at the shifting chakras. So they thought that they could find her in her sleep did they? Well if they figured that once she was asleep that I couldn't protect her they had another thing coming.

I had my sand settle into a chair like shape by the side of Sakura's bed and I sat in it, making sure I was comfortable since I was going to be there a while. I reached inside myself for a sinuous ribbon of my chakra and pulled it out until the ribbon coiled and pooled in my hand.

Since it would be easier for me to do this if I was touching her I took her frail hand in mine and gently wrapped my fingers around it. Reaching for that chakra ribbon again I took the end of it and sent it twining up her arm.

Blood red in color my chakra streamed forth like the cursed Nile to cover Sakura's body from the top of her head to the tips of her iridescent feet. It swirled across her figure and flowed to form a glove around her flickering emerald form.

Satisfied I opened my eyes to see my chakra glowing steadily around her body; the other colors had been banished by the wave of my chakra and now she was safely encased in red liquid light. Underneath the glow I could see Sakura's pale face but now, instead of being screwed up in fear, she was smiling softly and she turned on her side towards me, her fingers tightening around mine in her sleep.

I'm not sure why but it comforted me a little to know that, at least in her sleep, she was glad to see me.

_Sakura...._

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So now that you have read the end of the last chapter**(if you haven't read the rewritten second half of chapter 8 then go back and do that now please! It's important!)** and the whole of this chapter what do you think?

do you like it?

OH!!!

**and two _more_ IMPORTANT MESSAGES**

One

**_I AM LOOKING FOR A BETA_**

anyone interested can either contact me through a review or through the PM

Two

_if you don't want me to respond to your review(cause I like to do that but some people don't seem to like me doing it) just leave a little mark like so_

xo

Thanks!

REVIEW!!!!!!

and send the plot bunnies treats!(they have me at knifepoint as I type this-HELP!)


	10. Nightmare

Hello my loves!

Here is another (admittedly short) chapter!

amazing that I got anything out this soon!

are you not amazed?

Oh! and since I never seem to do a disclaimer I DON'T OWN NARUTO OR GAARA OR ANYONE ELSE HER!!!!!!

there

I think that should be enough of disclaimer to keep them that watch these things happy

OH!

and also!

_**IMPORTANT!!!**_

**_I am looking for a beta!_**

**_anyone interested contact me and I would be estatic to talk with you!!!_**

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Sakura's POV

_Huff huff huff huff._

_I sprinted around the bush and nearly tripped on an outcropping of rock. Stumbling I flailed my arms in an effort to rebalance myself and then I set off again, sprinting across this endless field. _

_I could hear them behind me, howling for my blood and getting closer with every second. I glanced back and saw a flash of them through the tall faded grass. There were even more wolves than before, all in patterns of smoky greys, dusty blacks, and ashy whites. _

_I whipped my head back around and my breath caught in my chest as I took in what had appeared across the color bleached field. _A fence.

_A 20 foot tall chain link fence had suddenly materialized against the pale grey sky a few hundred yards away and I ran to it, looking frantically for some sort of entrance as I heard the savage baying behind me close in. _

_When I didn't immediately find a gate I ran along the side of the fence, hoping that somewhere along its dull silver extent I could find a way to get in and bar the wolves from following. But I was tiring and my sprint had turned into a staggering run. Though I refused to give up I didn't know how much longer I could keep running and I could hear the wolves so close behind me that it would only be a minute until they caught up._

_Huff huff huff huff huff huff huff huff _

_THERE!_

_I put on an extra burst of speed and rocketed towards the gate that had appeared further along the length of the fence. I fumbled at the catch and yanked open the gate, lurching in and jerking it back into place. _

_But then something terrible happened. _

_The catch wouldn't close again!_

_I tugged wildly at the metal but it wouldn't budge and I looked up to see a wolf appear only a few feet away from where I stood. Its eyes smiled victoriously and it flung itself towards the gate. _

_I flung my whole body against the gate and locked my fingers around the frame of the gate and the frame of the fence, holding them together. When the wolf hit he bounced back with a yelp and then leaped again, jolting me through the fence. _

_More wolves came and they all hurled themselves against the fence, biting and snapping and tearing at me with their claws through the fence._

_"Get away!!" I screamed raggedly, closing my eyes against the sight of their snapping jaws and pushing against the dirt with my legs, desperately trying to keep the gate from opening. _

_But they didn't. They just kept coming and I sobbed through the pain and the fear and the blood that was running down my side and my hands and arms and face. I couldn't run away or they would burst through the door and rip me to pieces but if they kept this up I wouldn't be able to hold the door much longer..._

_And then, suddenly, there was a warm hand wrapping itself around mine. I felt a warmth from the hand travel through my fingers, rushing up my arm and covering my body._

_And then the sounds stopped and I stumbled to the side. Opening my eyes I looked around and saw that the field was gone and there were no wolves and there was no fence. Instead, I stood at the edge of a vibrant green oasis in the middle of an endless sea of desert. I looked down at my hand and saw that wrapped around my fingers was another larger hand. My eyes traveled from the hand up the arm until they came to a broad shoulder of a man._

_I raised my eyes slowly to the man's face and gasped softly in joy, my eyes welling up with happy tears, when I saw who it was. _

_"Gaara..."_

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Review my dears!

REVIEW PLEASIE!!


	11. Desperate Whore

Hello everyone!

So this is sorta a side chapter but I'm going to do something with what happens near the end so it's not really

anyway

**THANK YOU SO MUCH EVERYONE!**

I got so many reviews for the last chapter!

They make me so happy! (wipes away a tear)

so anyway read on and enjoy!

P.S. I have more notes at the bottom but I figure I should let you get reading:)

_RECAP from Sakura's POV(request by kallou) Gaara( acrazy hot guy from another dimension) is sent undercover to guard Sakura( a suspected Flame) and after two weeks she is attacked by a talking Mountain lion from a dimension called Danakya. Sakura temproarily unleashes her powers in the battle and she heals the wounded Gaara. When Sakura wakes up she remembers nothing of the incident but she see's Gaara's shredded and bloody shirt and when he won't tell her what happened they have an arguement and she leaves in tears. She has a nightmare but is saved in the dream by Gaara and here we find here peacefully sleeping in bed..._

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Sakura's POV

"SAKURA!!!"

"Oufff!"

_**What the hell?!**_

"Sakura!"

I opened my eyes and looked down towards my stomach where a great sobbing weight lay.

"Haku?" I said sleepily.

Haku lifted her head, "Sakura he broke up with me! He broke up with me and and and and and..." she started hyperventilating.

I sat myself up and shifted her into my arms. "Ok breathe honey breathe. What happened?"

Haku struggled to inhale, "Well this morning was the come at 5 o'clock $5 all you can eat at Ihop (which is an American pancake and other breakfast food restaurant for all you non American peoples out there) so Zabuza and I decided to go on a date there. And we've been fighting alot again lately but I thought when he offered to take me out that that meant things were ok! But then when he picked me up from Yumi's house this morning he was all quiet and he barely talked the whole time we were there and then when he dropped me back off he told me that he didn't think things were working out and that he was breaking up with me! And then you know what _else_ he said!", she said, her voice raising to a hysterical wail, "He said he still wanted to be _friends_!"

And with that Haku burst back into violent sobbing and I cradled her as I stroked her back, rocking gently back and forth.

"Shush shhhhhhhush. It's alright honey it's alright." I murmured.

But it was apparently it was not alright and it was a long time until Haku's cries quieted into soft shuddering breaths and the occasional sniffle.

Now that her crying had quieted enough for her to hear me I tried to reason with her. "This isn't the first time you two have broken up. You've broken up, what, two or three times before this haven't you? And you've always gotten back together after like what? A week? I don't think you two have ever actually lasted two weeks apart!"

"But what if he really means it this time Sakura? What if we _don't_ get back together? I don't know what I'm going to do without him!"

I could hear the panic in her voice rising and I cut her off before the tears could start again. "You know what we're going to do? We are going to have an anti-boys day together. And I think we'll start the day with a good old healthy trip to the mall.

Haku moaned and buried her face into my comforter. "I don't want to go." she muttered obstinately, "I want tea and toast and then I want to go back to bed and never get up again."

"Tea and toast I can arrange," I said as I shimmied out of the covers, gently pushing Haku into a sitting position at the edge of the bed, "but you my dear are not going to go and start a marathon mope like the least time. I'll go start the food and you go wash your face, your makeup has gone all smeary from crying."

I stood and tugged at her hand to get her to follow me. I lead her to the bathroom and dropped her off there before I headed to the kitchen to make the promised food.

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Though we ended up running to catch the bus, barely making it to the stop on time, we did manage to eventually arrive at the mall and once the bus dropped us off we scurried as fast as we could through the big glass entrance doors to escape the razor sharp cold.

Once inside, with the warm air thawing our fingers, Haku and I stripped off our coats and scarves. As I peeled off my layers I looked around at the amazing scenery of the Fire Country Mall.

Now you would think that all malls look relatively the same with stores and kiosks and fast food restaurants and while, yes, our mall has all those things it looks nothing like a regular mall.

The Fire Country Mall is like one massive gorgeous greenhouse. In the corridors between all of the stores the ceilings are made entirely of glass and there are plants in every available space. Vines that line the edges of the upper levels cascade down the brush the heads of the people on the levels below. Bushes and flowers are housed in masterful architectural sculptures of planters. Little waterfalls flow down tiny stone mountains and there are elegant miniature gardens with little shrines where people leave offerings of pennies, candy, price tags and incense from the Tibetan Gift shop.

You see the story goes that the man who designed the Fire Country Mall was a famous architect but he was very environmentally unfriendly and he was very fond of using rare and endangered substances and resources for his projects. Then one day he was in a horrible car accident and he was almost killed. Afterwards he claimed he had a vision from God and that God had told him that it was his mission to create buildings that embodied hope and growth and life and it was because of this that he made the Fire Country Mall, his first project after his release from the hospital, into a spectacular greenhouse.

Even though I've been told that that story is probably just an urban legend I still like to believe that it's true and I never cease to be awed every time I walk though those glass doors.

"Sakura!"

I snapped out of my happy reverie and turned to look at Haku.

"What?"

She pulled at my arm impatiently. "Come on," she said, "I got us a locker for our stuff so hurry up and put your stuff in there so we can get this shopping business over with and I can go back to bed."

I smiled at her and followed her to the locker where we hurriedly stuffed our belongings into a too small locker before heading towards the marvelous smelling Hollister store across the corridor.

I rummaged around through the different shelves looking for sales on anything, because let's face it; I don't have the money to be spending on full price Hollister stuff.

_That's too expensive and that's too see through and that's too low cut and that's too expensive and_

_**Ohh I like THAT one!**_

_But look at it! It's like a tissue thin scrap!_

_**But but **_**you**_** just look at it! We would look SO sexy in it!**_

_No, absolutely not _

_**Well FINE! Then what about THAT one?!**_

_Oh that one? That one looks cute and it's...on sale for $20's! Oh let's try it on!_

"Haku I'm gonna go try this on!"

Haku looked over at me from beside a shelf of perfume, "You do that." she mumbled as she looked back down towards the bottles. "And come show me when it's on!" she called as I turned away.

I seized my prize and found myself a dressing room where I stripped off my warm red sweater and replaced it with the thin cotton shirt.

_**Dahm that looks CUTE!**_

_Oh it does!_

The airy shirt was a blue and green and white plaid top that buttoned up the front leaving a sexy v where the buttons opened up. The fabric was soft and frail and lightweight and it drifted delicately over my pale skin. I was hooked instantly and instead of showing my shirt to Haku I found myself changing clothes immediately and bustling straight up to the counter to buy it.

Triumphant in my purchase I came back to Haku to show her the treasure that I had bought but, being disgruntled at me for not showing her while it was on, she instead dragged me out of the store mumbling about the dahm store smelling so strongly that she couldn't smell the bloody perfumes.

I let myself get dragged first from Hollister to Macy's and then from Macy's into Bath and Body Works before Haku finally found a perfume in Victoria's Secret that she liked. As a peace offering I bought her the perfume and by then it was time for lunch.

Haku and I deposited our purchases in our locker before gambling off towards the food courts. (having once before had someone try to steal my stuff while I was eating I decided in Haku's present state of mind that if someone tried to do that they might end up with a fractured wrist or some stitches requiring bit marks and though I was happy that Haku was grumpy instead of weepy I decided I preferred to avoid the scene) Once there I bought myself a Chick-Fil-A chicken nuggets meal with some Polynesian sauce and set myself down besides the more cheerful Haku.

"So Sakura," Haku asked, putting down her pizza, "what happened to you yesterday? I went on Facebook with Yumi and I saw you're your post said '**Sakura** is miserable' so what happened?"

"Well...," and I dived into the whole explanation of falling off the stairs and waking up in Gaara's arms and how he was so sweet and worried about me but then how I saw his bloody shredded shirt and how he wouldn't tell me what was going on and then about how I yelled at him and that he just walked away.

"And he was so cold Haku." I said miserably, "I mean Tenten, Hinata and Sasuke have all talked to me before about how there's just something cold and off about him but I had never felt anything like that until yesterday. I mean usually when I'm around him my emotions are all over the place and I go from really happy and bubbly to sad and confused but then he always make me feel better right away and I float right back up to the ceiling I'm just so giddy. Being around him I almost get sorta dizzy with emotion like he makes me high or something. And the crazy thing is it that I didn't even realize until yesterday that even though he acts really reserved, compared to how he acts around others he's actually really open with me. I just didn't see it until he shut me out like that. And being shut out hurts Haku, it really really hurts."

"Oh baby I'm so sorry." Haku said, leaning over to hug me round the shoulders, "do you want me to beat him up for you?"

I chuckled while wiping away the treacherous tears that had leaked out during my story. "No thanks. Or well...at least not yet. And honestly I think that you would get your ass handed to you. He's _really_ strong."

"Oh but does he have nails?" Haku said, fluttering her manicured fingers.

"Haha no," I said, "it would be pretty creepy if he did."

We sat there for a minute silently eating our food, both filled with thoughts of stupid heart crushing boys.

"So ummm...," I finally said, as I nibbled on my steaming chicken, "do you want to keep going or should we go to the movie store and head home?"

Haku sighed and slurped her chocolate shake, "Do we have to go to the movie store? Can't we just go home?"

I patted her arm, "Don't worry, I already know the movies we're gonna get and then can go straight home. Just finish up your shake and pizza and we'll be outta here."

"Well look who it is."

I turned around to face the owner of the snobby voice and found myself faced with one of my least favorite people in the world. Ami.

I stood and crossed my arms, "What do you want Ami?"

"Can't I say hi to a childhood friend?" she said, smirking at me with pouty glossed lips. "How have you been _forehead_? Still pathetically pining away after Sasuke?"

I glared furiously at her, "I was fine until I saw you. And no I'm not _pining away_, for your information I'm totally over him and we're actually really good friends now. Not that it's any of your business in the first place."

"Ha! As if!" she sneered. "You're probably so desperate you're stalking him and you've deluded yourself into thinking that you're friends!"

I was getting upset by this point. Having just gone over what had happened between me and Gaara my nerves were not currently in tiptop shape and the Sasuke conflict was an old wound that still hurt to have someone poke at it. Add that to the fact that I stayed up late crying and then Haku woke me up early let's just say I was not entirely emotionally stable.

"Shut up Ami." I growled despite the sudden pricking in my eyes.

"Yeah, shut up bitch." Haku said standing.

"Haha!" she said pointing at me, "Are you going to start _crying_ forehead? Are you that big of a baby? No wonder Sasuke always thought you were a loser! You're still the same old crybaby who could never move on and accept that _nobody likes you!_ You never got over him you-"

"Actually," I felt someone's warm arm wrap around my shoulders and pull me into their body, "Sakura's really _not_ interested in my little brother anymore because she's got something_ better_."

_**No fucking way!**_

I looked up and saw Itachi standing there beside me looking incredibly sexy and hot.

"What are you doing?" I whispered, blushing as I realized that Ami's antics had gained an audience.

Itachi leaned into my hair in what probably looked like an intimate gesture, "Just play along," he whispered back.

Ami tried to rearrange her flabbergasted face and failed, "What? Itachi? You can't be serious Itachi you would never be interested in someone like _forehead_."

"Interested?" Itachi said, "I'm not interested," Ami smirked, "We're _dating_."

I looked away from Itachi to grin gleefully at Ami but my eyes caught on something red behind her and for a millisecond I swear I saw Gaara standing there, but when I blinked he was gone. I blinked a couple more times in confusion and looked eagerly around but I didn't see him anywhere.

I looked back at Ami and saw to my delight that she was standing slack jawed and gaping at us, her mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water.

"But...but..._how_?"

"Well for starters," Haku stepped forward, with a triumphant smile on her face, "she doesn't look like an ugly mud eyed hoe. Second, she's not a slutty bitch. And third, she's not a sniveling pathetic bully And...what else Itachi?"

Itachi smiled over my shoulder at her, "You forgot that she's not a desperate whore."

Haku beamed, "Oh yeah, and that."

_**HAHA! TAKE THAT YOU WHORE!**_

"You! You you _LOSERS_!" Ami screamed. She glared furiously at me and I twiddled my fingers cheekily at her. She roared in rage and spun around, barreling through the onlookers that had gathered around us.

"Alright now, nothing to see here." Haku said as she waved the people away. They dispersed and she turned back to look at us, still beaming. "Ok that," she said, "was _amazing_. Sakura can you actually start dating Itachi so he can be my brother in-law?"

I laughed and reached out to punch her arm, "As if you goof! If you like him so much then _you _date him." I looked back up at Itachi, "That _was_ amazing Itachi. I don't know how to thank you."

He grinned down at me, "No biggy Sakura. You know you're my favorite little sister in the world and the look on that bitches face was flippin hilarious.'

I laughed, "Man I wish we had it one film!"

Itachi's eyes lit up and he looked up towards the ceiling, "Oh ho ho!" he said merrily, "I do believe that it _is_ on film! And guess who has a friend in the security monitor room who can hook us up?"

"No way!"

"Yes way", he said, swinging around and pulling me with him, "Come ladies! Let's go and get us a security tape!"

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So there it is!

i thought it was funny

hopefully you did too

**IMPORTANT!**

**I am looking for a beta! Not a fish(yes some kind person offered to give me a fish) but someone who would read over my chapters before I post them and help me with grammer and spelling and plotline **

**anyone who is interested please say so in a review or pm me**

Reply to my anonomous reviewer

bunnyluv-thank you so much! you have no idea what you saying that means to me3

And THANK YOU TO EVERYONE ELSE!

(my fabulous philipino buddy)xXbochiXx,The Daughter of santan,(my loyal reviewer who is very insistant about recaps-lol love you dear)kallou,aifos3,soccercrazyfreak,gaarasakuralovers,(my wonderful aussie buddy)SasuSaku-kun, (my cookie giving friend) Grace Grants, Neko4

THANKS EVERYONE!!!!!!!

and remember

_R&R!!!_


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